Hidden
by AA Battery
Summary: After Season 4, Jack goes to Mexico to start over... takes places about 6 months after day 4.... for Jack lovers! Please Read and Review
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: No, I don't own 24…… IF ONLY!

**Author's Note**: Enjoy!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 1- Stars**

Jack lay awake, staring up at the clear July sky. He could see the stars. That had been one of the biggest changes when he ran into Mexico. The stars. In L.A. the buildings always obscured the view- you could see a few stars of course- but never all of them. Never like this.

He couldn't decide if he liked it. They were beautiful of course. They twinkled and flared and dusted the otherwise black night with light. You couldn't look at them and think about them without knowing there was something bigger out there. If you really looked at them- and _really _thought about them- you could tell there was a God somewhere out there. It filled him with a painful hope that maybe, just maybe, Terri and Paul and Ryan and the countless others he had killed were up there- twinkling and happy.

But while he had hope for those he killed, the stars took away any hope for himself. Because surely, any God who made such beautiful things- would not care for anyone so…… he struggled to find the right word. Ah, he had it- dirty. He wouldn't call himself _bad _because he worked for good- he knew that much. But at the same time he wasn't good, he wasn't clean. He was dirty. Dirty in the blood of innocent people, those whose lives he had to take for the "greater good." And of course, even bad people had blood- and he was covered in it. So, the peace he hoped Terri and Ryan and others had found, he knew would never be offered to him. Not even all the good he'd done could wash away the dirt and grime that covered him.

He sighed and rolled to the side- he didn't want to think about anything right now. He had rested on the small duffel bag that carried his belongings- the things he dared to keep with him. They were impersonal items- standard. A few changes of clothes, a toothbrush, a razor, one bottled water. If anyone should search the bag they would find nothing that could link him back to anything he once was. Nothing in there linked him to America, Palmer, L.A., CTU, the military, Kim, Chase, Angela or the old Jack Bauer. It was the simple bag of a ranch hand in Mexico.

There were three things that connected him at all to his old life. These he kept in his wallet at all times and his wallet in his pocket at all times. Slowly he drew the first out. It was a letter and to anyone else it was short and from a simple man around named David. He had memorized it, but couldn't make himself throw it away. He unfolded it carefully and read.

Dear Jack,

I can't say thank you enough for all the help you've given us these past few days. I don't know what we would have done without you. Remember that you always have my thanks and the thanks of others you helped out while you were around here. Good Luck!

- David

Jack smiled to himself. Even the president had to write in code sometimes. Jack had to give it to him- to someone who didn't know what they were looking for- it appeared a simple note from friend to friend. No one would guess that the 'help' was really saving huge amounts of people from terrorist threats. No one could know that 'these past few days' were years, most of his life. From serving in the army to CTU to countless covert missions. No one would know that the 'thanks of others you helped out' were millions of people who probably didn't even know his name and probably never would.

Jack refolded it and pulled out the second thing that people could use to connect him to anyone of importance. Though this one would be nearly impossible to link him back to anyone. It was a key. He rubbed his finger over it, remembering when Tony and Michelle gave it to him. It was to their house. It was surprising how much he was touched by this act. Obviously he would probably never use it. But it was a sign that he was always welcome.

He thought of them and hoped they were doing ok. Something inside him told him they would be fine. When he last saw them they had just survived through another awful day and were once again hopelessly in love. The smile faded from his lips as he remembered another pair of people who he had hoped would stay in love. Audrey. He didn't blame her- but she had made his worst fear come true. She had seen the grime that covered him and pushed away.

Terri had seen it- and had accepted it and still loved him. She was willing to make it work with him. This was a big reason why it was able to work between them. She had accepted all of him- the muck of his work and every flaw. Kate had met him during his work. She had seen the things he had to do and could deal with it. But, she couldn't deal with the fact that even outside of work he still wasn't clean. She thought that once he was home, he would be normal, act happy. She thought that the depression he earned from work was left at work. Once she discovered that it stayed with him, she had left him. But it wasn't an awful break-up. He had come to realize he didn't love her, and she didn't love him, so they broke it up mutually. He had a feeling that Claudia would have understood, but she didn't get the chance.

But Audrey was the worst. For months he had tried to keep her away from the dirt on the inside. He had gotten a desk job, hidden the dirt with a spotless, glowing cover. She loved him and he loved her, but was too afraid to let her see his true self. And his fear turned out to be well-founded. The second she had seen the real him, the filth his job came with- she had been revolted. She said she still loved him- but it was obvious what she really meant. She still loved him as long as he had the mask on. So, ignoring the fact that he would happily put it back on for her- she walked away.

He sighed, and put away the key. He took out the last link- the most dangerous one. The agent in him told him to throw it out- to burn it- it was too risky. But the father in him, the _human _in him couldn't do it. So he took it out and stared at it as he so often did.

It was a picture. He couldn't see so well in the dark- but the moonlight was just enough to make it out. Chase's arm was around Kim and he was holding Angela. Kim's one finger was in Angela's grasp while the other held onto Chase's hand on her shoulder. He had memorized every detail. Kim was looking at Angela and smiling and Chase was looking at Kim and smiling and Angela was the only one looking at the camera and she was smiling. A tear filled up his eye and slowly fell down his face.

God, he missed them. He had respected Chase as a partner and discovered Chase was as good as a son. Angela had begun talking and he was delighted to hear her call him "Pop-pop" only a few short weeks before the day that changed everything.

And Kim. Oh, God, staring at her picture could never cut it. He missed her with every fiber of his being. Just to see her move, watch her smile, hear her laugh one more time would mean the world to him. When Teri died, he gradually accepted that she was in a better place and she could still watch over him, and he could talk to her. With Kim he couldn't even do that. It made it so much worse that she was alive, and not so far away and yet he could never see her again.

He took a deep breath and put the picture away, gaining control of his emotions. Releasing the breath he put his wallet away and turned his mind to different things.

It was time to settle down. In case of anyone even getting a whiff of who he truly was, he had spent the last 5 ½ months moving. He took a job at a ranch and only stayed for 3 or 4 weeks. But now, he felt it was safe to find a steady job. He had been on the road for about a week and passed some places. He was looking for the right one. He needed one with not too many people- one where he could have some privacy. He didn't care about the pay- but he needed a job where he wouldn't starve to death. But most of all, he wanted to work for someone honest and good. He wasn't about to take the slightest chance that the person he worked for could have terrorist connections like Hector and Ramon Salazar.

That would be a disaster. If his boss was taken down for terrorism- he would be questioned- most likely at CTU L.A. and they would know who he was. They would turn him over to the Chinese, but probably he would meet with an "accident" on the way. He had kept up with news well enough to know that President Keeler was deemed brain dead 3 days after he left and never woke up from the coma. That meant President Logan was in office for at least another 4 months- and he was running again come November.

He closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep. His hand curled around the gun under his "pillow." Some habits never die.

Author's Note: Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

Author's Other Note: Please review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I don't own 24... if I did Logan would have tripped and broken his skull in the finale!

**Author's Note:** This is for bert05!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 2 Hired**

Tomas smiled as he heard his two daughters singing loudly. He couldn't tell what song it was- but he was glad just to hear them sing. His wife had died about 4 years back and while it had been rough for a while- everyone had healed for the most part.

He wiped the back of his hand on his forehead and his smile faded as he saw a lone figure walking up the dirt road to him. Tomas leaned against the fence and waited for the man to get to him. He took this opportunity to study him. He was carrying a single bag, which wasn't even stuffed. He was wearing jeans that were rumpled and dusty and a simple t-shirt. He wasn't looking at Tomas, but scanning the surrounding land as if checking to make sure no one was around.

"Hey," the man said, coming closer. He met Tomas' eyes and for a second the older man was thrown off. He prided himself on being able to read people- but this man was different. His eyes showed sadness and some pain, but nothing else. No personality- but perhaps the sadness and pain was all there was left. "Need some help around here?"

Tomas studied him further. He was muscular and moved with the grace of a cat- but not a house cat- a big cat- a hunter. Usually Tomas wouldn't hire this type- but he did need some help. His only son had just gone off to college and he had laid off the old workers to pay for it. Now his horse had given birth to a fine colt and money was good. It wouldn't hurt to try him out.

"Gotta name?" he asked.

"Jack Hunt," the man replied. Tomas inwardly grinned- Hunt- it fit him.

"Wife? Kids?" A flash of pain then,

"No."

"Drugs?"

"Been clean for over 2 years." Tomas frowned and his eyes went to the man's left arm. Jack stretched it out and Tomas saw that there were no recent tracks- only the old scars and even those had faded.

"Smoke? Drink?"

"No smoking," a small smile. "Not serious drinking."

"Cops after you?"

"No." Tomas mentally shrugged- Jack didn't seem to have any problems but he had the aura of a man who could defend himself.

"Ok, I'm Tomas Verdugo- You can work here." Tomas said. The small smile twitched up again. "You get a room, food, and 100 bucks a week." Tomas grinned- he knew what he just said was a ridiculously low amount of money- even with the room and food.

"Ok," Jack said. Tomas stared at him, stunned. He was expecting more of a fight about the pay. He quickly recovered.

"Ok. Here's the deal. No drugs- get drunk away from here- smoke no where near the animals or my house. You get involved with either of my daughters and I'll kill you. I don't care how much she loves you or blah blah- I'll kill you." Tomas paused- checking Jack's reaction. To his surprise there was a flash of understanding in his eyes and a quick nod.

"Basically you just help out around here. Clean out the stall, feed 'em, weed-wack, you know the standard. Ok?"

"Yeah," Jack replied. Tomas waved Jack to follow him and lead him into the small barn. He went up the stairs into the loft and opened a small door. Inside was a small cot, a sink, a small table and an alarm clock. It was dusty but not overly dirty. It was small and it was Tomas' "tester room." Once people had showed they were trust worthy he had a larger spare room on the first floor of the house.

"Gotta gun?" Tomas asked, suddenly remembering. Jack froze, his hand automatically slipping to his back where he kept it.

"Yeah," Jack's eyes were narrowed ever so slightly as if he was worried about Tomas' motives.

"Give it over," Tomas said, holding out a hand. "You don't need it here. There's no reason for you to have it." Tomas' eyes dared Jack to demand to keep it. Jack slowly pulled it out of his pants, clutching it tightly. Tomas, tilted his head, Jack seemed surprisingly hesitant about handing over his gun. Of course, people had gotten mad before- some had even refused the job. But not like this. Jack's whole body was tense and if handing over the weapon would kill him on the spot. After what seemed like a long wait, Jack seemed to give in and put the gun in the older man's hand. He remained tense until Tomas put it in the back of his pants. Then Jack relaxed ever so slightly.

"Well, I'll show you around," Tomas said and lead Jack out of the room.

* * *

Jack followed the older man, feeling naked. It had been months since he'd been without his gun. The reassuring weight on his back wasn't there anymore and as he followed the older man around his reflexes were screaming at him that every rustle was a Cop or the Chinese. He paid attention, but let his mind wander after a while.

This farm was exactly what he was looking for. An elderly man, with two daughters, Jack was the only worker. It was perfect. He wanted to trust the man- but the agent in him refused to do that. As always. Jack let out a small sigh- sometimes he wished he didn't have to always have his guard up- it was exhausting. But he couldn't have any mistakes.

Sometimes, usually late at night, he would imagine what it would be like to turn himself in. To give up running, to just stop and take whatever punishment anyone had for him. But he wouldn't. Not necessarily because he would most likely die- but because it would implicate Tony and Michelle and Chloe. Tony and Michelle were finally getting their life back together and Chloe had always been a loyal friend. He would not do anything that could lead to any problems for them.

As he looked back on that day- on that moment, he wondered if he hadn't told Tony the Secret Service agent was going to kill him. What if he just went along and let the agent kill him? He glanced as the sky. It was clear and empty with no cloud to be seen. But he remembered those stars. If he had given himself in, given up- would he be up there?

He shook his head, mentally chuckling, of course not.

* * *

Author's Note: Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

Author's Other Note: REVIEW! And I'll update:)


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** No, no I don't own it- but boy if I did!

**Author's Note:** Yet another chapter- whoohoo me!

**Joe's Girl:** Ummm… ok, first things first- his name is Logan not Larson:) Second- to be honest- I didn't really look at the time line- I started watching halfway through Season 4- went back and watched the other seasons and never really found out how much time was between each season- so for the purposes of this story- that is how it's going to work- sorry if that's a really big deal to you. About the letter- umm…… Palmer mailed it to Jack at Jack's temporary hotel at the beginning of his exile/thing- Jack got it after season 4 ended- you can have it get to him anyway you choose. Jack sticking out like a sore thumb? Maybe he does- but surely there must be some other people from the U.S. who went down to Mexico. I hope you continue reading!

**tasuki- **Ya- but I figured she was almost 3 now- so Pop-pop would be something she could say... And she was already calling Chase Da-da :)

**Everyone else:** Thank you very much and here is the next part.

**Hidden**

**Chapter 3**

Tomas finished explaining everything to Jack, happy that Jack seemed to know what he was doing. Still, he went over everything- not wanting Jack to mess up something important. Jack had been quiet but attentive.

Tomas spent the day telling Jack what went where and so on. It was just reaching 5:30 when the dinner bell rang. Jack spun at the sound- not looking spooked- but aware. Tomas had noticed that Jack had to be aware of everything going on around him. And as much as he paid attention to his new boss- a part of him was always elsewhere, scanning the grounds or making sure nothing bad could possibly happen.

"Dinner bell," Tomas said. "Same thing happens for breakfast and lunch. Try to come as soon as you hear it- otherwise the food gets cold. And we wait for everyone to be there- so everyone's food will be cold- not just yours."

"Yes, sir," Jack replied. Tomas was startled for a second. Never in his lifetime had any worker ever call him 'sir,' unless they were being yelled at. Jack, however, didn't seem to even think about it. It just slipped right out of him, as if he called every boss he ever had 'sir,' and no matter what the job, the boss got called 'sir.' Tomas smiled slightly- well he could be a 'sir.'

He lead Jack into the main house, which was not a mansion- but comfortable. As usual Jack did a sweep with his eyes of the rooms they walked in. Checking for anything out of place, as he always did. It seemed to Tomas that this was a reflex of Jack's.

"Hey, girls," Tomas said, entering the kitchen. "This is Jack, he's gonna be helping us out with the ranch and such." His daughters spun around and both gave Jack bright smiles. Tomas felt his pride soar again, his girls were so welcoming. Jack hesitantly returned their smiles with a small one of his own.

"Jack, this is Theresa," he said pointing to his older girl, about 17 years old. "And this is Maria," he said pointing to the younger, 15 now. He watched Jack carefully- there was no leering, no light of desire in his eyes, no gaze that went too low. He smiled to himself- so far his instincts about Jack had been right.

"Hello," Jack said nodding.

"Hi Jack," Maria said, setting the table as Theresa served the food.

"Jack, you can sit there," Theresa said, indicating the chair next to Maria at the 6 person table. Maria was putting all the food down and everyone took their seats. They said grace and everyone began to eat. The girls chatted and this was the first time Tomas really noticed Jack's figure. It was muscular, but a little on the thin side. Actually a lot on the thin side. He was not sickly, but he could definitely afford to gain some weight. He saw Jack's eyes widen ever so slightly at the amount of food on his plate.

"If you want any more- feel free, Jack," Theresa said grinning as Jack began to eat.

"No, that's ok, thanks," Jack said, looking slightly overwhelmed. Tomas chuckled. The more he saw of this Jack Hunt, the more he liked. While he had the aura of a dangerous man, he also made you feel as if he was going to protect you. He was polite and courteous. Only one more thing remained- a test he did on all his new workers- was he a hard worker?

Dinner ran smoothly. Jack was shy, but polite and the girls were more than happy to fill the silence with cheerful banter and stories from throughout the day. More than once, Tomas caught Jack's eyes flash with a look of unimaginable sadness and pain before closing up again. Besides that he seemed to be enjoying himself, smiling every so often.

After dinner, Tomas took Jack outside to a pile of hay bales. This was his test.

"Those go up in the loft," was all he said before he walked off. It was an impossible task- he knew. To get all those hay bales up in the loft would mean at least 4 hours of HARD work- probably 4 and a half if you did it steady and close to 5 if you took your time. Hopefully- half of it would be in the loft before Jack decided to turn in. But he didn't tell Jack that- it was a test of how hard Jack was willing to work without his supervision. Tomas smiled to himself and then grinned as he saw his daughters fighting good-naturedly over the remote. Life was good.

* * *

Jack stared for only a minute after Tomas left before getting to work. He grabbed two bales and walked quickly up the steps. He smiled to himself- the work was exhausting. That was good- Jack had quickly learned that if he went to bed tired enough, sometimes the dreams that plagued his sleep would leave him alone for one night. On the road, he'd walked until he was literally too tired to stand. Even then, though, sometimes dreams managed to get through. 

Though the work was hard, it didn't take any thought, so unfortunately Jack found his mind wandering to some of those dreams that he tried so hard to escape from. Most were just him reliving the worst moments of his life. Killing Ryan, seeing the nuclear bomb blow up and take George Mason with it, being tortured for the memory chip were just a few.

Then there were the ones that had real people in them, but the scenes never actually happened. Audrey yelling at him that she hated him, Terri yelling at him saying it was all his fault, Ramon laughing at him- there were countless of these.

But it got worse. The worst were with Kim. Sometimes she was telling her kids how their grandfather was a junkie who resisted arrest for doing something against America. Others she was screaming at his grave that she hated him for leaving her. But the worst were the ones where she simply forgot he ever existed. He would walk into her house and she wouldn't even see him or she wouldn't know who he was.

He sighed and pushed any remaining thoughts of nightmares out of his head. He tried to think of happier things. Ah, the food- dinner. Jack hadn't really had the money to eat as much as he used to and without realizing it, gradually he had just stopped eating as much as he should. He had never starved but the meals were small and he had missed a fair share of them. He was now comfortably stuffed and he realized how much he liked the feeling.

He continued to work, silently going up and down the steps. His thoughts turned to Tomas' daughter. They reminded him painfully of Kim and his un-born child. Would they have been so close? He had never asked Kim what she thought of having a younger sibling. It had seemed pointless- it would only bring up awful memories. But sometimes he wondered if she was happy that she wasn't going to be an only child. He would never know.

'You're never going to even talk to her again,' the thought from the dark portion of his brain stabbed roughly into his reality. He paused working for a second, feeling as if a white hot pincer had just been stuck in his head. To his surprise his eyes began to well up. Frowning, he hurriedly rubbed his eyes. It wasn't true. Some day he would be cleared to come back. And even if he wasn't someday he would see her again. He went back to work, keeping that thought in his head. Someday he would. He didn't allow himself to consider the possibility that he would never talk to his baby daughter again. He couldn't consider that. If he did, he knew he would probably get his gun back, find a nice quiet spot, taste the metal in his mouth and pull the trigger.

Somehow he would talk to his daughter, even if she didn't know who it was. Someday.

**Author's Note:** Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note:** PLEASE REVIEW! I love them!


	4. Chapter 4

**Hidden**

**Chapter 4**

Tomas blinked as he stepped out of his house into the rising sun. It was 5:30 and the girls were still asleep. However, as he had explained to Jack, it was best to get some work done in the morning then having to do it in the afternoon sun. He walked over to where the remaining hay bales would be……

and stopped. There were none there. He glanced around. Frowning he did the math- they finished dinner around 6:30. That would mean Jack was working until 10:30 or 11! He shook his head, that couldn't be- never before in the history of his tests had that been done before! After the shock wore off, he smiled to himself. He had gotten himself a honest, good, smart, HARD worker. This was great!

He looked up as he heard someone coming down the stairs from the loft. It was Jack. He looked tired, his clothes a bit rumpled, but he had obviously taken a shower in the tiny one up in the loft. His hair was wet, and he was running his hands through it as he walked down. He looked up and saw Tomas' shocked expression.

"What?" Jack said, immediately looking worried. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, it's just… just," Tomas stopped. "Never mind."

"Is there something special you want me to do?" Jack asked, accepting the answer. "Or just start on the morning stuff you told me about yesterday?"

"You can just start on that stuff," Tomas answered, still reeling from the shock of Jack working late and still being up on time the next morning.

"Yes, sir," Jack replied, walking off towards the main barn. Tomas stared after him- who had he hired?

* * *

Jack set about the morning chores, feeling at peace. His sleep was dreamless and every night of no dreams was a blessing. The last time he had a good dream was longer than he could remember. They simply didn't exist for him. When he was a kid, he could remember hoping for a good dream- one that would be action-packed and exciting. He would wake up after having a good dream and write it down in his "Dream Book." Unfortunately, the "Dream Book" didn't make it through growing up. He sure wished he had it now- just to remember some of the good dreams. He didn't have anything that used to be his. No childhood memories- hell, he didn't even have his adult possessions.

Jack let out a growl of frustration- this work was all muscle- his mind was free to wander around to whatever it wanted. He shouldn't be here! He was trying to save lives! He had orders from the president, it was the only way to get the warhead and he didn't even shoot the damn consul! Why should he have to give up his friends, his family, his LIFE when he was just acting on orders? Damn it, make someone else take the blame for once!

'Who do you want to take the blame instead of you, Jack,' a cool inner voice said in his head. Jack sighed, these quick moments of anger that sometimes raged, always left him feeling tired and worn out. He had tried to be mad. Mad at the agent who ratted him out, mad at the Chinese, mad at the Chinese guards, mad at the consul, mad at Logan and mad at Palmer. But, nothing worked. Deep down he knew that he if didn't follow out those orders, millions of people would be dead. And when it came down to it, one man losing everything he had was better than millions of people dying and a nation thrown into chaos.

He was expendable. That's what he told himself. His life was small in comparison to millions. One is smaller than a million. So at the end of the day, if people were still alive and he was miserable, so be it.

The breakfast bell broke into his thoughts. He stopped what he was doing and headed toward the house- not wanting everyone to wait just because of him. Besides, he had the feeling he was ahead of schedule anyway. He entered the house- once again doing a routine scan for any cameras or other oddity. He didn't really expect to find anything- but letting his guard down would only invite mistakes.

He walked into the kitchen, amazed at how much food there was. There were scrambled eggs, bacon, waffles, hash browns, orange juice and water. Tomas smiled at him.

"We don't usually have this much," he said.

"But, we wanted to properly welcome you to the family," Theresa finished her dad's explanation.

"And Dad didn't tell us you were here for dinner yesterday!" Maria added.

"Oh," Jack said, feeling very self- conscious. Did he really deserve this? "Thank you very much- it looks good." Everyone smiled and sat down.

Breakfast ran smoothly and Jack found himself satisfied and stuffed. The girls were welcoming and sweet and Tomas was very nice too. However, Jack was happiest when they were talking amongst themselves- because truth be told, he wasn't sure he deserved this in the least.

Jack stood to go back to work when Tomas stopped him.

"Oh, Jack- we have a phone. The number is 310-597-3781- if you want to give it to anyone to contact you- feel free- but big phone charges are out of your paycheck!"

For a second, Jack felt a stab of pain. There was no one to tell. He couldn't tell any of the people he would have counted as friends. Frankly, even though Tony and Michelle and Chloe knew he was alive, it was still better if they didn't know too much. Oh God, not even his daughter could know! At that moment, Jack felt utterly alone in the world. There was no one around who really knew him and people he did weren't allowed to contact him or thought he was dead.

"I don't think anyone will be calling," he said, quietly. Tomas gave him a look of confusion and- was that sympathy? Nodding, Jack silently walked out.

He worked with Tomas the rest of the day and after lunch, Tomas announced they were ahead of schedule and it was too hot to work. Jack stopped for a moments, not knowing what to do. This was the first spare time he's had on his hands for a long time. Usually it was work or walk till he fell asleep.

He thought about it a minute, then decided to exercise. If he was going to be eating this much, he better make sure it turned to muscle and not fat. Besides, hopefully it would make him more tired when night came. Finding a quiet, shady spot behind the barn, he started doing some push-ups.

* * *

Tomas, chuckled quietly to himself. He was usually still working right now, but since Jack worked at an amazing speed, he could take some extra time off. He was becoming more and more happy that Jack had decided to work here.

The smile faded. There was something different about him. He couldn't put his finger on it- but the things he did were off. Not off in a bad way- but still…… off. He was so expressionless except if you looked very closely and his eyes gave him away. If his answer about the phone was anything to go by, he didn't have anyone who would care where he was working.

Tomas thought about to the pain that radiated from the man when he asked about a wife or daughter. Maybe that's why he was so sad. Maybe they had died. Well, that made sense. It would also explain the temporary drug use. Tomas shrugged- maybe that was it. Just a man who lost his wife and daughter.

Maybe that was it- but he had a feeling it was more.

Author's Note: Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

Author's Other Note: Sorry this took so long- I was on vacation! Please review!


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **I don't own it- I just play with it!

**Author's Note: **Thank you all who reviewed- please keep 'em coming!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 5 Nightmares**

Jack sank to his knees, holding his head in his hands. He wanted it to stop, begged it to stop, but it wouldn't. He was trapped.

"I'm dead because of you, Jack," Terri glided in front of him, her eyes full of hate. "You killed me. I'm sorry I ever met you- you are the worst person I know."

"Please, Terri," Jack said. "I didn't mean to-"

"You didn't mean to!" she screeched. "Well, a lot of good THAT did me. Useless piece of information- just like you, useless, useless, USELESS!" Jack tried to stop listening to her. He tried to tell himself that this wasn't Terri, this was just a dream.

But his dream self couldn't stop her, so finally he ran away from her, trying not to here her laughter as he ran. He ran right into Kim's house. She was feeding Angela, singing a song that he had once heard Terri sing to her. She ignored him, she probably didn't see him. She looked happy and when she swung around he was fascinated to see that she was obviously pregnant. She spun around, talking to Chase.

"So, if it's a girl, Elaine and if it's a boy?" she asked.

"Not Chase," Chase replied. "I don't want to have a junior. How about Jack?" Kim laughed.

"Why would we do that!" Jack felt a stab of pain. "All he did was cause trouble for the family. My mother was killed because of him, you lost your hand, he killed his own boss, he was a junkie- it's really a good thing he's dead- next thing he would have hurt the baby!"

"Kim, I was joking- obviously I know how much you hate him!" Chase laughed. Jack couldn't move- then realized it wasn't just because of shock it was because he was chained to a table. Victor Drazen walked up to him, smiling cruelly.

"I thought killing her would hurt you- this is so much better, isn't it!" he said, laughing. The table turned so he could see his surroundings and suddenly he dropped. He landed in another set of chains clasped around his ankles, wrists, and neck. Terri walked up and slapped him.

"You failed me, Jack," she said simply and walked away. She was followed by a young girl. His unborn child?

"You failed me, Jack," she said, also slapping him. She wasn't the last. She was followed by Mason, Chapelle, Gael, Paula, Stephen Saunders, the other members of Night Fall, Claudia, the man he had encouraged to play Russian Roulette, DeSalvo, countless agents he had worked with, faces he didn't know the names of but remembered faintly. Finally, after hours, the line seemed to end and it was the row of bad men he had defeated standing before him.

"They belong to us now," Victor Drazen said.

"We do whatever we please with them," Ira Gained said, nodding. Jack began to struggle against the chains- it was true.

"They are ours," Marwan said, grinning. The rest took up the chant. "They are ours. They are ours. They are ours." Panting, Jack struggled even more violently. They came closer to punch him and kick him and he struggled even though it was doing nothing.

"They are ours."

"Jack? JACK!" Jack awoke, disoriented. He began to continue fighting when he recognized Tomas standing above him. He nearly strangled the man until he managed to recognize that the older man was not going to hurt him. It was just a dream, he told himself.

"You okay?" Tomas asked.

"Yeah, fine," Jack said, feeling anything but fine. He hoped Tomas didn't know how close Jack had come to attacking him.

"You don't look so good," Tomas said, looking concerned. "Maybe you should take the day off, it's Saturday anyway."

"No, no, it's okay," Jack said, getting up. "Just give me a minute- I'm fine, really." Tomas frowned, but nodded and left Jack to get ready.

Jack sighed, rubbing his chin- it felt as if people had repeatedly slapped him. It's in your mind, he told himself. He quickly got dressed, still feeling woozy, but walked out with his 'agent' face on- not letting any pain or dizziness show through. He didn't want Tomas to think he was skipping out on work after only 4 days. Tomas seemed to accept that he was ok and they continued their work, only slightly behind schedule.

* * *

Tomas glanced over at Jack every so often, wondering about what he had just seen. Obviously Jack had had a nightmare, but what was it about. True events? He didn't want to sound callous, but didn't people usually stop having nightmares when they grew up. He didn't think Jack was a baby, so it must have been really awful. 

But what could that mean? He had seen before that Jack had a lot of pain in his life, but bad enough to cause such nightmares? The man had been thrashing around in his little cot, muttering and panting. Tomas had been a little nervous to touch him, he was failing about so much. Luckily Jack recognized him as he woke up.

Tomas had figured that once he knew Jack for a little while the mystery would be solved, fairly quickly. But it seemed the more he learned about Jack Hunt, the less he knew. He didn't particularly like not knowing about Jack. He wasn't going to pry, but he wished Jack would tell him _something. _He had no background information on him besides what he had asked the first day. But Jack didn't seem to be the type who would appreciate someone asking questions about his past.

Tomas glanced at him again. He looked exhausted, well more exhausted than usual. Tomas had quickly learned that Jack liked to work late and get up early and work some more. During his free time in the after noon he worked out or ran and once Tomas had caught him sitting outside the barn after a long day of work as if he wasn't tired enough to go to sleep yet. When asked, Jack had replied that he just couldn't get to sleep. Tomas had shrugged it off, as long as Jack got up in the morning, he didn't care.

But Tomas was finding he DID care. Usually Tomas would get close to workers after they made it clear they were going to stay for a while and if they were nice people. But with Jack, Tomas was finding himself drawn to help him. Though Jack showed no sign of needing help, Tomas' instincts told him that Jack needed a friend or someone. Sometimes Tomas felt like a dad. He would watch what Jack ate, watch to see if he went to bed at a usual time and worried that Jack didn't seem to have anyone who cared about him. Other times he would feel like a friend, when Jack would give him one of those rare small smiles he gave once and a while.

It wasn't that he wasn't the boss. Jack continued to show him the up-most respect, doing whatever he said, and calling him 'sir' usually. But Tomas didn't act like the boss with Jack. With other workers, he would give the order and leave, adapting a strong voice as well. That way it was clear he was in charge. With Jack though, he talked normally and Jack never questioned his authority.

Tomas sighed. He had known the man 5 days and already he was worrying about whether Jack had nightmares? It didn't make sense- he'd never done anything like this before. But Jack seemed to draw you in. He seemed to stand for honestly, goodness and loyalty and you couldn't help but want to make sure he was ok.

He noticed it in his daughters too. They were nicer to him than the other employees- not that they were mean to the others- but he had seen Theresa give Jack an extra scoop of pasta at dinner. And he had smiled when Maria had invited him in for ice cream just the night before. He was glad to know it wasn't just him that was affected like this. It seemed that everyone liked Jack.

The breakfast bell rang and as usual, Jack immediately set his things aside neatly and headed towards the house. Tomas smiled and did the same. The girls were chatty as usual and Jack seemed to put his exhaustion behind him to smile and add a word here or there.

But Tomas noticed that not all was as well as it seemed. Jack picked at his food, not really eating any of it. It wasn't long before the girls noticed as well.

"Jack, what's wrong?" Maria asked.

"What?" he said, deliberately taking a bit and eating it.

"You're not eating much," Theresa said suspiciously.

"I guess I'm not hungry," Jack replied.

"Well, eat," Maria demanded, for a second reminding Tomas of his wife. "You can't work on an empty stomach." Theresa nodded. Jack nodded, and gave in to the order. Maria and Theresa shared a grin- they had won.

Once breakfast was over, Jack and Tomas helped clear the table and then set back outside. Tomas was concerned to see that Jack's attempt at looking fine slide off once they were outside of the house. He seemed to pale with each step. They went back to work, with Jack moving slower than he ever had. Suddenly he dropped the rake he was working with.

"Excuse me," he mumbled before dashing around to the back of the barn. Tomas frowned as he heard Jack throwing up violently. Should he go see if Jack needed some help? Deciding Jack probably wouldn't like that, he waited until the sounds had ceased (which was much longer than he liked) before walking around back.

Jack had leaned up against the barn, sweat pouring off him, shaking ever so slightly. He was rubbing his throat and mouth.

"Are you okay?" Tomas asked walking up.

"Yeah," Jack said, getting to his feet slowly. "Just felt a little sick, that's all."

"No, you're sick," Tomas said. "You're going back to bed." This seemed to upset Jack even more.

"No, no," he said, shaking his head. "I'm fine. Really. Must've been a little stomach bug or something."

"Fine," Tomas said, feeling this was not a fight he was going to win. "But go drink some water and if you can't keep that down, you're going straight to bed." Jack nodded.

"And no working out today," Tomas added. "You're going to work yourself to death."

* * *

Jack sighed as he walked up to his bathroom to rinse off his face and drink something. He really did feel better after throwing up. But still, he wished he hadn't eaten anything. He knew he sometimes threw up after a nightmare- it had happened on the road, before he stopped eating breakfast. 

He walked back down to work, still thinking about the latest nightmare. He had had it before, well, ones very similar. He probably deserved them. After all, all those people in them were telling the truth. He had failed them. One way or another because of him, they were dead.

That was the fact. People tried to tell him it wasn't his fault. And he believed them to an extent. But in the end, they related to him some how and now they were dead. That was the bottom line wasn't it? That's why those twinkling stars would never be his. Because when it came down to it, Jack was dirty.

**Author's Note: **Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note: **Please review!


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: **No, still don't... WAAAHH!

**Author's Note: **Umm... not much to say- sorry this took so long- on vacation! Please enjoy and thank you to all who have been reviewing!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 6**

Jack sat down, leaning against the barn. It was 1:30pm and usually at this time he would be exercising. But, even if Tomas hadn't given him the order not to, Jack didn't think he would have been able to. He was exhausted. Usually he was tired by this time, but nothing like this.

Before his nightmare, he had stayed up for hours, trying to get to sleep. Then he had finally fallen asleep only to wake up again. Then he had the nightmare, which gave him no rest.

Logic told him he should go up in his room and try to catch up on sleep. But he didn't. He sighed and admitted it to himself. He was afraid.

Jack Bauer was afraid to fall asleep. Jack wasn't afraid of much. He certainly didn't fear death. No matter what the means, death would be a nice long end to the wait. He had already accepted that he couldn't be eternally happy, like Terri or Ryan, but at least when he was dead the he wouldn't have to make any choices. Maybe if he got lucky, he would get a glimpse of Terri being happy or Kim down on earth happy. Death might be the only way he could see her again. No, he didn't fear death.

He didn't fear physical pain either. Yes, he would rather avoid it. He didn't want to be beaten up by terrorists or tortured for information, but he had accepted it as part of his job, part of his life. At some point he was going to have to turn himself over to the 'bad guys' in order for people to live and they would have their fun with him and that was that. He'd inflicted pain upon himself to save others. He had sliced his own head and stabbed himself to play the part and he didn't fear it. He deserved the pain for the suffering he had caused and he had accepted that.

After Terri's death he was afraid to lose Kim. Actually he was terrified. If he lost her……… well, he couldn't think about it. So he feared that, as any father would.

But, now he quietly admitted to himself that he was afraid to fall asleep. He was afraid to see Terri yelling at him. He was afraid to see that young girl who he knew was his unborn child. He didn't want to face all those innocents he had killed. He didn't want to enter the world where the bad guys held all those he loved prisoner. Did that make him a coward? In a way, he decided.

It was the same way with quitting heroin. He wasn't particularly afraid of the physical pain it brought (though that was one of the most painful experiences of his life), but he was afraid of the emotional pain. Heroin had helped him forget about the awful stuff he had done in his life. The things he'd done in Mexico, the things not in the file, were horrific. He had done unspeakable things. He had killed innocent people at the command of the Salazars. He had helped them bring down honest people. He glanced at the tattoo on his arm. He'd gotten it after setting up and executing a plan which brought down one of the richest, most honest men in Mexico. That alone would be bad, but on top of that he gave over half his money to charity each year. Now, largely thanks to Jack, that money was going to the Salazars. They'd gotten him this tattoo after he had personally seen to it the man left all his money to 'Cousin Hector' and shot him.

Jack crossed his arms, not wanting to look at the mark anymore. That was just the tip of the iceberg in terms of all the horrid stuff he had down in the name of his cover. That's why starting using had been easy and just gotten easier as he stayed down there. That's why it was so hard to stop. That's why sometimes in the dark of the night right after waking up from having a nightmare, he craved a fix. He learned that avoiding sleep was best. Now, he feared to fall asleep.

He let out a small chuckle to himself. He knew that other younger agents at CTU and other places pictured him as a rock. He was amazingly good at his job and wasn't afraid of anything. He wondered what they would think if they knew that 'the great Jack Bauer' was afraid to fall asleep.

He let his head fall back against the barn. It didn't really matter- they all thought he was dead anyway.

* * *

Tomas got a bottle of water from the fridge and drank deeply. It was hot outside. Well, it always was, but today just seemed more tiring than normal. Probably because he was worrying so much. Jack seemed to gradually get his speed up to normal. But Tomas still wondered what had brought on such an awful nightmare.

He mentally shrugged and decided not to think about it. That was Jack's business. He finished the water bottle and walked outside to make sure Jack wasn't still working. He walked up to Jack room when he didn't see him in the fields- maybe he was up there. He knocked and when he didn't get an answer, he peeked his head in. Jack wasn't there. He frowned.

He looked out the window, where was Jack? As he walked out of the barn, he was beginning to get worried.

Then he saw him. Jack was leaning against the barn, his knees bent almost up to his chin. His arms rested on top of his knees and the side of his forehead rested on his wrist. He was asleep.

Tomas felt his father side soar and he quietly walked closer to get a better look. He had never seen Jack sleeping before, except this morning and he wouldn't count that. To his surprise, Jack looked peaceful. The constant wariness had melted away and he looked like the young kid he once was. Tomas smiled, happy that at least now, Jack got some peace.

The picture was only ruined by the fact that Jack's right hand was curled around his body, to where he must've once kept his gun. Tomas' smiled dropped at the realization; even in deep sleep a part of Jack remained ready. Tomas shook his head and decided to ignore that. Instead he focused on Jack's face. It was calm.

Tomas took a mental picture before silently turning and walking away.

The dinner bell rang and Tomas still hadn't had the heart to wake Jack. Besides, Jack had worked enough over-time already to take a few hours off. But, he didn't want Jack to miss dinner, considering he had eaten extremely little at lunch.

He walked over and was surprised when Jack didn't wake once he was standing right over him. He must really be tired. Gently, Tomas placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. That did it. Jack was awake immediately, flinching away from Tomas' touch. Tomas quickly withdrew his hand, a little shocked and a little hurt.

"Sorry," Jack said, panting slightly. "Wasn't ready for that."

"That's ok," Tomas said, smiling. Frowning slightly, Jack glanced around.

"What time is it?" he asked.

"Almost 6, the dinner bell just rang," Tomas said. Jack instantly went from confused to horrified.

"Oh," He was standing in a second. "I'm so sorry. I must've," he glanced at the ground where he was sitting as if unsure how he got there. "fallen asleep. I'm so sorry- it won't ever happen again."

"Jack," Tomas said, holding up a hand. "It's ok."

"Really?" Jack said. "We must be way behind on work. How long have I been out anyway?"

Tomas laughed. "We're not way behind on work. We're still a little ahead with all the overtime you've been doing. You've been down for almost 4 hours now."

"Oh," Jack said again. "I didn't mean to-"

"It's ok, Jack," Tomas said, smiling. "You were exhausted- a few hours of extra sleep would do you good- now let's go eat."

"Ok, thanks," Jack said, clearly relieved. Tomas lead him inside. The girls had already gotten the table ready.

"Feeling better?" Theresa asked.

"Yeah, thanks," Jack replied, sitting down at his seat.

"Well, that's good, you looked awful this morning," Maria replied. Jack shifted in his seat and Tomas changed the subject to different things.

* * *

Jack sat trying to listen to the conversation around him. In his mind he kept going over it. He couldn't remember falling asleep- but that wasn't the real problem. The problem was the Tomas could get so close without him waking up. Jack had been trained to sleep on the barest edge of waking. He mentally shrugged- he had been exhausted- it didn't really matter, he decided.

He had been slightly uncomfortable when the girls started to fuss over him- the only person who did that was Kim nowadays- and it made him miss her even more. He suddenly wished he could take out the one picture he had and stare at it for a while- but he wasn't that stupid. No need bringing up questions.

Later that night, when he was back in his bed, he brought out what he had begun to think of as 'the three links' He held the key in his hand, hoping Tony and Michelle were ok, he read the letter from Palmer wishing he could talk to his friend one more time and he stared at the picture long into the night, wishing that he could somehow send Kim a message.

As he stared at the three things on his bed, he wished with all his heart that he could go back to his old life. He wished his could drive to CTU in the morning, talk to Palmer on the phone, joke around with Tony, put up with Chloe, flirt with Michelle just to annoy Tony, baby sit Angela, have a beer with Chase, go to a movie with Kim and go to sleep without being afraid of nightmares.

God, he ached with every fiber of his being to go back, to just be normal.

**Author's Note: **Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note: **Please review!


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: **If only...

**Author's Note: **umm... nothing much to say- thank you to those people who reviewed:) reviews make me happy...

**Hidden**

**Chapter 7 A Food Plot**

Jack woke up the usual time Sunday morning, stretched and was happy to note that he was feeling much better. He wasn't exhausted, hadn't had any nightmares and he was not nauseous. Those 4 hours of sleep probably did him some good.

He took a quick shower before meeting Tomas downstairs.

"Feel better?" Tomas asked.

"Yeah, thanks," Jack said, feeling his mouth turn upwards into a small smile. It still felt weird to have people caring about him. For close to 6 months it was just him, alone. Now, people cared about him and it felt good to have someone have his back again.

They finished the usual morning chores in great time- the breakfast bell rang- just like it did every morning. Jack smiled, he was starting to like this routine. His life had rarely had a routine; every day it was a different problem, a different way to handle it. He liked that. He liked the thrill, he liked saving people. But now he was finding he liked the simple things of living here. No one was in immediate danger, there were no threats, no huge problems to solve, no worry about who would live through the day. It was…… peaceful. He would give anything to go back to his old life, but if he couldn't- he supposed here was second best.

Breakfast went as usual- the girls happily chatting, Tomas laughing at them or telling his own stories, and Jack smiling and every once and a while chuckling softly. After breakfast Jack walked out with Tomas, ready to start doing the rest of the work.

"Hey, Jack," Tomas said. Jack looked over- hoping he didn't do anything wrong. "It's Sunday- you get the rest of the day off."

"Oh, really?" Jack said, Tomas had never mentioned that.

"Of course- go relax," Tomas said, striding away.

Jack stared after him. This wasn't good- just because he as peaceful now, didn't mean that the nightmares wouldn't come back if he wasn't tired enough. Well, he could work out- extra hard too since he didn't yesterday.

* * *

Tomas walked back into the house after checking on the foal one last time. He grabbed a book and settled down to read.

But he didn't. Instead his mind wandered to Jack's crestfallen face when Tomas told him he had the day off. Who wouldn't want a day off? He wished he could find a way to find out about Jack that wouldn't seem nosey. Like if all his workers had to fill out a little back ground sheet. Unfortunately- he had already asked all the background questions he usually asked, and it would be unfair to ask Jack more.

'He's only been here a week,' Tomas told himself. 'Eventually he'll tell you something.' Tomas sighed, somehow he doubted that. Jack barely said 10 sentences all day- and that's when you asked him a question. It was odd. Normally when someone talked that little, a person would see it as rude. But with Jack, it just seemed to be who he was. He didn't talk, not because he didn't like you, but because that's just who he was. It wasn't the frustrating kind of not talking- like when his son went through brief "teenage" years- it was simply quietness.

"Hey Dad," Maria said, interrupting his thoughts. Tomas looked up, and caught the look in her eye. The look that meant she was planning on tricking somebody.

"What is it?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

"We have an idea," Theresa said, entering the room.

"An idea about what?"

"Well," Maria started. "Jack's going to be staying right?" Tomas nodded. "But we still don't know what kind of food he likes."

"So, we were thinking, he could drive us to the store this week," Theresa said.

"We'll force him to pick something out for himself!" Maria said, chuckling in the little evil manner.

"Nicely," Theresa said, elbowing her sister. Tomas smiled inwardly. He trusted Jack and it didn't seem like such a bad idea. He didn't want Jack to eat anything he didn't like- although Jack never seemed to have any preferences about what he ate at all. Also, he was touched that his daughters cared so much about Jack.

"Fine," Tomas said. "I'll go make sure he's okay with driving you."

Maria pouted. "Why wouldn't he be?"

"I just gave him the day off!" Tomas said. "The man needs to relax sometime."

"The trip will be extra relaxing!" Theresa said.

"As long as he tells us what food he likes!" Maria added. Tomas smiled and walked outside to tell Jack. He found Jack lounging outside the barn, probably taking a few minutes off before starting to work out.

"Hey, Jack," Tomas called. Jack was on his feet faster than Tomas could register. "I got a favor to ask."

"Sure, anything," Jack said.

"The girls go grocery shopping every Sunday- I was wondering if you could take them today- you can use my car."

"Yeah, sure," Jack said, look relieved. "That's fine.

"Look Jack," Tomas said, turning a little more serious. "Listen to them as if they were me and don't you let anything bad happen to them."

"Yes, sir," Jack said, looking totally serious. Something in his posture made Tomas feel that he was sending his daughters out with a man who would probably die before letting them get hurt. Well, that was fine with him.

"They know how to get there and they have the money." Tomas assured him. "Oh wait, that reminds me- here's your pay for the week." Jack flipped through it before grabbing 40 dollars and handing it back to him.

"You overpaid me," Jack said, carefully avoiding his eyes.

"Nonsense," Tomas said, pushing Jack's hand back toward him. "You've earned every penny with all the overtime you did this week."

"Thanks," Jack said, smiling and looking a little bit uncomfortable at the same time. Tomas smiled and slapped Jack on the shoulder. He walked toward the house, Jack definitely wasn't used to praise.

* * *

Jack stared at the extra 40 dollars in his hand and then at Tomas' retreating form. So far his day had been great.

In 15 minutes the girl's were ready to go and singing got into the car.

"What kind of music do you like Jack?" Theresa asked as she fiddled with the radio.

"Oh, I don't care," Jack replied. "Anything's fine." Theresa nodded before finding a station she liked and stayed there.

As the girl's sang along, Jack realized something. He was going into what people had called "agent mode." Tony and Michelle had once said that Jack went into "agent mode" when there were big problems. They claimed he acted different, talked more seriously. He had laughed it off, but came to realize that they were right.

Now it was happening. He could feel the slight adrenaline begin to rush. His eyes scanned the road searching for any movement. He tried to relax, but it was useless. Tomas' words had gone to his head and he knew that he wasn't going to be able to totally relax (or as much as he could) until both girls were safe on the farm.

He smiled. He liked the feeling. He felt like he was back protecting Palmer again. While his brain knew that the girls were of course, not the presidents of the United States, his body was adjusting as if they were. There was nothing he could do to stop it. Besides, in his heart he knew that Theresa and Maria were just as important as the president to Tomas.

He wouldn't fail them like he had all those others. His silent promise to himself just increased the agent in him. He was just as tense as he would be if he was driving Palmer through L.A.

He suddenly wished he had a gun. The urge to have one swept across him. How was he supposed to protect the girls if he didn't have a gun? He struggled for a second, knowing he had just passed into a stage of being too tense.

'Relax,' he silently told himself. He was dangerous enough without a gun and the girls weren't targets of terrorist and he was in the middle of Mexico, not a city. Gradually he relaxed back to his normal agent level. He was aware of everything, ready for anything. He liked it.

The drive to the store wasn't long and as they pulled up, Jack found himself studying each person around them, searching for any sign that they weren't what they seemed. Maria and Theresa bounded out of the car and Jack followed them.

They grabbed a cart and began going through the store and taking what they needed. Jack followed at a distance, uncertain of what to do.

"Hey, Jack?" Maria asked. "Will you go get some eggs?" Jack hesitated- what if something happened when he was gone. He inwardly sighed- he had his orders. Do what they say. And protect them. Did Tomas know the problem he had created with the two different orders?

'Yeah, sure," Jack said. He forced himself to relax as much as he could. He went and grabbed some eggs, feeling out of place. Usually Kim came over and made sure he had food. Then they would go shopping together. She would bark out orders while yelling at him for not keeping up to date on his refrigerator. She would walk into the door, screaming about self-imposed starvation and not care who was watching. He would do what she said, teasing her. She would yell at him for teasing her, but smile to show she was joking. Tony had once come with them and told Jack that Kim was worse than anyone from District.

He remembered how little old ladies would watch them and smile. One time, one of them even came up to them after Jack had been yelled at and told Jack that he should listen to his daughter more. The little old lady had been laughing. Jack had saluted her, also laughing and Kim had hit him and told him to march off and get the milk. As Jack marched off, Kim started talking to the lady and before long Kim was complaining good-naturedly about her crazy father. Both of them were laughing. He smiled a small sad smile. He missed that- laughing with his daughter.

He returned with the eggs, his agent side slightly down since no one appeared to be dangerous.

"Thanks, Jack," Theresa said. They sent him out for more stuff, thanking him each time. He found himself relaxing more and more.

"Ok, next is cereal," Maria announced.

"What kind?" Jack asked, putting the yogurt he just gotten in the cart.

"Pick whatever kind you like," Maria said, smiling. Before he could complain she had pushed the cart away. Looking worried, he walked to the cereal aisle.

He stared at all the cereals. What kind should he get? He didn't want to get a kind that only he liked. So far they had had Life, Cheerios, and Frosted Mini Wheats. He considered getting one of those, but then thought that Maria would guess he was only buying what they already had. What kind did he like?

He had always kind of eaten was what around. Teri liked Fruit Loops, Kim like Fruity Pebbles, Kate didn't like cereal and Audrey liked Lucky Charms (he'd always thought that was cute). He decided he didn't want any of those. Too many memories for every breakfast. He looked around and grabbed Apple Jacks- he had no idea if he liked them- but oh well.

* * *

Maria watched as Jack came back with Apple Jacks, she thanked him and set him out for strawberries. She turned to Theresa and nodded. Their plan had worked so far. They still wanted him to pick out his favorite ice cream. But so far he had, hopefully unknowingly, picked out his favorite cereal, yogurt, and juice.

He once again came back, and she was happy to note that he was looking considerably more relaxed. When they had first walked in he had been tense. She had noticed how he had glanced suspiciously at everyone they saw. She shrugged; her dad had probably told Jack he would kill him if anything bad happened to them.

She smiled; her dad was protective like that. She had originally been surprised he had even let Jack take them, since he had only worked for a week. Maria hadn't been nervous at all- Jack seemed so polite and nice. Theresa wasn't worried either when Maria first told her the plan.

She was in the ice cream aisle waiting for Jack when he cam back.

"Ok, what kind of ice cream do you want?" she asked as he put the strawberries in the almost full cart.

"I don't care," Jack said.

"Well, I do, what kind?" Maria demanded, putting her hands on her hips. She had not come this far to not get what she wanted.

"Really, it's fine," Jack said, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Jack, am I gonna have to torture you for information?" she asked, playfully. She saw Jack stiffen the slightest bit, before relaxing.

"I guess so," he said, smiling.

"Give me your hand," She said. He was held it out and she opened the freezer door and put his hand on it.

"Now, Jack, you're going to be working for my dad for a while, and we want you eating what kind of ice cream you like- so what kind is it?" Jack was chuckling slightly and Maria smiled back at him.

"I'll never tell," he said, smiling.

"Oh, I would Jack," Theresa said, coming up behind them. "Because she's done that to me- and it's gonna get cold real fast." Jack had begun to squirm a little.

"Fine," he said, sighing in defeat. "Cookies and Cream."

"Good," Maria said, dropping his frost burnt hand. "Don't make me do it again." Theresa laughed and grabbed the ice cream. As Maria walked ahead, Theresa whispered in his ear,

"Don't worry, next time- we'll attack her together." Jack laughed again, holding his hand against his warm shirt.

Maria smiled at Theresa and winked, probably guessing what she had told him. Jack hung behind as they paid and Maria whispered to her sister,

"Mission accomplished."

The way home was much like the way there, except Jack was more relaxed. More relaxed then he had been for 6 months. He smiled- realizing what he had just done.

He had fun. Well, maybe not fun, he hadn't let his guard down of course. But it was the closest thing he had to fun in a long time.

Author's Note: Please excuse any spelling mistakes due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

Author's OTHER Note: Ahem- I just discovered the Hit button thing- and I have proof that alot more of you people are reading this than are reviewing! Now, really! PLEASE REVIEW! I'm BEGGING you!starts sobbing PLEASE PLEASE PLEASEerm- sorry- i just really like reviews! Anyway- thank you for reading and reviewing people:)


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **If I owned 24- you would know it

**Author's Note: **Thank you to all who reviewed! Here's another before I leave for the weekend!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 8**

Jack woke up on Thursday, feeling sick. Not physically sick, but mentally sick. After 4 nights of blessed dreamless-sleep- he'd had a nightmare. It wasn't a bad one and he couldn't remember the details- but the faint hope that had been growing in him was broken.

He got up and took a quick shower, which was cold since the outside water had no heat. He slipped into some clean clothes, which luckily he had. He ran a hand through his hair, making a mental note to use the washer machine sometime today.

He walked downstairs, stretching. Tomas wasn't there yet, and he sighed. He knew it was too much to hope that the nightmares wouldn't return. But he did anyway. And whenever Jack Bauer hoped something didn't happen- it did. It was just the way of the world.

He hoped his family would always be safe- Teri died. He hoped Kim wouldn't blame him- she did for a while. He hoped he could quit CTU- he was dragged back to be used and tortured. He hoped he wouldn't have to go undercover again- he did and got hooked on heroin on the way. He hoped no one would ever find out- they did. He hoped Audrey would accept him- she didn't. He hoped his life could be normal- it wasn't.

He hoped he could go back to his old life- it probably wasn't going to happen. He didn't deserve it to happen anyway. That's what he knew. He didn't deserve anything good. It had been said before- he was a natural killer. Killers didn't deserve to have nice lives. It made sense- he took so many lives- why should his be good? It was justice.

People were always telling him he didn't deserve the awful stuff that happened to him. They told him the same thing- You don't deserve this, Jack, I'm so sorry. It's not your fault. You did this in the name of good. Palmer apologized for Jack having to run from the country he protected. Tony had told him quite clearly that he thought it was unfair. Michelle had given him a small sad smile which showed she was sad for him, but at the same time her eyes blazed with rage at what was being done. Chloe had told him bluntly (as she always did) that Logan was a stupid fool.

But he wasn't so sure. To him it was payment. For all the lives he'd taken, families he'd broken, innocents he'd sacrificed. It was justice.

* * *

Tomas wiped his hand over his sweaty forehead. It was hotter than anything. It was just after lunch and already the sun was high in the sky with no cloud in sight.

"Damn this weather," he said. "I'm gonna go get us some waters before we both pass out from the heat." Jack gave one of his signature small smiles and nodded.

Tomas grabbed the waters about of the refrigerator, once again worrying about Jack. He was unusually quiet today. Tomas sighed- he didn't think he'd ever figure Jack out. He was just so……… un-figure-out-able. He walked back to where they were stacking some hay bales.

"Thanks," Jack said, taking a bottle of water gratefully.

"No problem," Tomas replied. He grabbed his shirt and yanked it off. "It's just too hot for this- once we finish this pile we'll turn in. Start around 4 when it starts to cool off."

"Good idea," Jack said, following Tomas' lead and stripping off his own shirt. Tomas glances over and stared.

Jack's chest was riddled with scars. Tomas had never seen anything like it. There were long cuts that started up by his neck. One ran diagonally down his entire front and disappeared into his left hip. His right hip had an obvious bullet scar. There was another bullet mark on his left shoulder. He had obviously been stabbed in his right side. The inside of his right arm, which Tomas had never really seen, had gruesome burns on it. The same weird burn was up near his neck.

Jack finished taking a deep swing of water and turned back to work. His back was the same way. Off his side there was a bullet wound that wasn't completely whole- he must have been clipped by a bullet. Different cuts made their way around his flesh. The weird burn was imprinted on his right shoulder and arched down to his mid back.

Tomas shivered, and forced himself to begin working again, though all he saw was the scars again. They _looked _painful- he couldn't imagine how they had gotten there. The burn didn't look like a fire accident. It looked intentional and he couldn't think of any other ways someone could have those kinds of knife scars unless someone did it to you.

Tomas frowned. Jack didn't appear dangerous- but those scars weren't normal. Tomas sighed- he couldn't allow Jack to stay if he had dangerous people looking for him. And the stab didn't look as faded as the others. Deciding to take the casual approach, he started.

"So, Jack, lotta scars you got there," he said, not stopping work. He saw out of the corner of his eye- Jack look down at his torso before shifting uncomfortably. "How'd you get 'em,"

Tomas continued to work, but didn't miss Jack's sharp intake of breath.

"You know……… around," Jack said, also continuing to work.

"No I don't know, Jack," Tomas said, starting to get serious. "But you better tell me, cause you are not staying around my daughters if you have people who………" He stopped and gestured to Jack's scarred body. "Do stuff after you."

Jack looked down, took a deep breath and began.

"Well, uh……… back when I was on…… you know heroin," he started slowly looking anywhere but at Tomas. "I had this dealer who I usually went to. His stuff, was uh… better than other peoples."

Jack stopped, looking thoroughly embarrassed. Tomas didn't say anything- just waited for Jack to continue. "Yeah, so one time I didn't have the money and he wasn't in his bar/office place…… so I told the guy that was there that I'd already paid and I was a regular……costumer, so he believed me." Jack took a deep breath. "Well, uh, Pete- the dealer- wasn't too happy with that so the next week…… he and his boys picked me up…… and well… made me pay."

Jack was fidgeting. Tomas sighed.

"Why were you using heroin anyway?" he asked. Tomas had to know some things about Jack and he figured now was a good time to ask. Jack stiffened and for a moment Tomas thought he wasn't going to answer. Finally in a small, quiet voice that ached with sadness he said,

"My wife had died," Tomas stared; he felt his heart go out to Jack.

"I'm really sorry," Tomas said.

"Yeah," Jack said softly. "She died in March. I was using by April. Her sister finally told me that she wouldn't like me like that- so I quit."

Jack looked so sad that Tomas almost went over to hug him- then Jack went blank. Tomas started- he'd never seen anything like it- all the emotions Jack had been showing simply disappeared.

"Ok, well, back to work I guess," Tomas said, uncertain of how to handle the situation. Jack nodded and got back to work. Tomas stared for a second then got back to work.

* * *

Jack worked quietly, his mind still numb from the quick thinking he'd done. He didn't let himself think about Teri, he focused on his story- wondering if it had any holes in it. He'd never had to make up a story so fast in his life- usually he had it ready. It never occurred to him to have an explanation for the many scars that covered his body. Truth be told- to him they blended in. Like a birthmark that you were used to seeing- he didn't even see them anymore.

Looking down, he forced his attention to them. Many were gifts from Peter Kingsley's men. The burns were, the knife wounds. The stab mark at his side was the one he had given himself to keep his cover when Dina turned him in. The bullet shot in his left shoulder was from Operation Nightfall, the one in his right hip from the night he killed Victor Drazen. He couldn't see his back but he knew that the bullet scar on his side was when he got clipped doing a special mission when he was younger. The burn was from one of his CTU days, the knife wounds again from Kingsley's men. He felt the back of his head for the spot that hair didn't grow from when he sliced it to stay under with Eddie.

He sure had a lot of them. He could see why Tomas was upset. Suddenly Jack had a wave of guilt run over him. He felt bad for lying to Tomas who had been so nice to him. He sighed- this had never happened before. Usually the people he was undercover with were bad people and he didn't feel the slightest qualms about lying to them. He'd never fully trust Claudia- so that made lying to her easier. But he trusted Tomas and his daughters- he didn't want to have to lie to them.

But he did. He couldn't tell them who he really was. He had to remain Jack Hunt. He had to lie. To people who trusted him, people who he trusted.

Jack ran a hand through his hair, feeling more tired then ever before.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Please excuse any spelling mistakes due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note: **Reviews will be read twice, smiled over, looked at fondly and read to my cats. :)

**Author's OTHER Note:** This is the ending that was original in there- but it didn't go with the flow of the story so I took it out- however, in case you wanted to see it- here it is

Alternate Ending: Jack ran a hand through his hair, Damn this sucked.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **Ok, raise your hand if you actually think I own 24...

**Author's Note: **Sorry this took a little longer- family reunion in Ohio- don't worry- no blood- ok a little- but I wanted the remote back- no permant damage!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 9 A Day Off**

Tomas walked out of the main house and stretched. He made his way over to the barn where he met Jack and smiled. Jack had been working for him for 5 weeks now, and they had been getting more work done then ever. At this rate he could retire way earlier than expected.

Jack still hadn't opened up too much; Tomas knew nothing more of his past then what he had already said about his wife and the drugs. But, Jack had been come more relaxed- a little. To anyone else he was tenser than he should be, he was cautious and aware- but to Tomas, who had seen him when he first came, he was practically carefree.

Earlier that week, Tomas had had a friend over and afterward Juan and Tomas had talked privately. It still made Tomas smile to himself as he thought back on it.

"So, that man of yours," Juan had started. "Wound pretty tight, isn't he? Never saw anyone so tense in my life," Tomas had stared at him for a second- Jack had gotten tenser when Juan was there- but it was still nothing compared to what he was like when he first got there.

"You should have seen him when he first came," Tomas had said, laughing.

"It's hard to imagine him any tenser," Juan said, smiling. "But I'll take your word for it."

Tomas met up with Jack at the barn. His smile dropped slightly as he saw Jack's face. Jack was looking far off and the same sadness that sometimes came over him was there. Jack sensed his presence and he forced the sadness back, but Tomas could sense it was there- right under the surface.

"Ready for work?" Tomas asked. Jack smiled, though it was obviously forced, and nodded.

"Always," he said.

They worked through the early morning and before long went in to eat breakfast. Jack wasn't as cheerful as usual and didn't eat as much – but Tomas decided not to harp on it- everyone has bad days. After breakfast, they went back to work.

After they were done their regular 'have to always be done' chores, Jack stopped and looked over at his boss.

"Umm…… Tomas," Jack said, quietly. Tomas quickly stopped and looked over. "I was wondering……" Jack carefully avoided Tomas' eyes, as he always did when he was uncomfortable with anything.

"What's wrong?" Tomas said.

"Uh- could I maybe have the day off," Jack said quickly. Tomas frowned- his nagged doubt turning into full fledge worry. Jack must have taken the frown as a 'no,' because he quickly continued. "I mean if that's not ok- it's fine- I just wondered."

"No, Jack, of course you can," Tomas said. "You've worked more overtime than any worker I ever had- go enjoy yourself." Tomas saw Jack's body relax a little.

"Thanks," Jack said, smiling and meeting Tomas' eyes for the first time. "I really appreciate it."

"Sure," Tomas said, tossing Jack the keys. "You can borrow the car too- just be back for work tomorrow."

"I will," Jack said. "Don't worry." Tomas nodded and Jack walked toward the car and drove off. Tomas frowned. Jack had never down anything like this before. It was August- Jack had told him his wife died in March so it couldn't be that. Tomas sighed, more mysteries around Jack. Well, he supposed his should be used to it.

* * *

Jack drove into town and straight to a bar. He walked in and sat in the corner, ordering two beers and made it clear he did _not _want to talk. He took a sip of the first beer- deciding to take his time. There was no rush- and he would be drunk by the end no matter how slow he drank.

Drumming his finger against the can, he decided he mine as well think about it- since he would hopefully be drunk soon and not have to. He owed it to her to at least think about it for a little.

Taking a deep breath he opened the gates of his mind that were always thinking about her- Kim.

Today was her 27th birthday. Jack sighed- his little girl was 27 today. And he couldn't even call her and wish her a happy birthday. Couldn't even send a present or a card or tell her how proud he was of her. God, he was proud of her. She had managed to overcome her mother's death and raise a family of her own. She hadn't followed his terrible example. She had married someone who was willing to given up his job for her. Something that Jack couldn't do for Teri. Somehow, she had managed to have a perfect life even with all the problems he'd cause her.

He continued drinking. 27- How did she get that old? He remembered the day she was born. He was very young then- fairly carefree. He was in the army but hadn't started his covert ops- so he was clean and Teri was beautiful and they were hopelessly in love. He had come into the hospital nervous and to be honest- somewhat frantic and Teri was trying to be strong- but he could tell she was terrified- what if they weren't ready- what if something went wrong.

Kim had been born- no problem. He remember as Teri had given the last push and the doctor had announced it was a girl and he felt tears prick his eyes as Teri held her and then passed her on to him. He had thought his heart would burst. She was so beautiful, so small. The doctor had given them their privacy and Teri had smiled at him and he had smiled at her and Kim fell asleep. The nurse had taken her to the other room and Teri had fallen asleep, but he had stayed up, sitting in the hard chair and memorized every detail of that moment.

He was there for her first 3 birthdays, but he was doing special training on her 4th. He remember calling after a lesson on how to deal with torture. They were taught methods to block out the pain and something to hold on to mentally- something that would provide a stronghold. Jack had thought of Kim, of when she was born and when she had walked and when she called him "Dada" for the first time. Teri had answered the phone and he remembered he was so glad to hear her voice- he was happy to hear anything that wasn't a list of ways people could get information from you. She had told him that Kim missed him before putting Kim on the phone. Kim was excited to talk to him and excited about all her presents and she had done most of the talking. He was glad for it- all he wanted was to get home.

It went on like that- he was home for some- but missed others. He would always apologize and she accepted it- that sometimes Daddy had to go away for a while- but he'd always be back. Sometime he wished he could share her faith in that. Teri always told her- He'd be back, honey, he'll be back. Sometimes that's was pulled him through. If a mission went wrong and it would've been easy to give up he knew he had to make it- because he had to go back- because he'd told his daughter he would be back.

As she grew into teenage years, she began to get suspicious about what her father did. It was confidential. Teri only knew some things- so he'd told her that he was away on training. He's moved to work at CTU when she was 14 and luckily that reduced the number of missions he was on. She had some idea of what he did- but not much.

He ordered another beer. He wondered what she was doing now. Probably having a party, maybe? It had been a little over 6 months since he'd "died" hopefully, she was enjoying herself- not thinking about him. He hoped Chase had gotten her something nice. Maybe Tony and Michelle had stopped by. He hoped so. He hoped everyone was going on with their lives- happy. Tony probably had stopped by. Maybe even Palmer- no that would just remind her of him. Well, whatever, he hoped whoever was there was having fun- especially his baby girl.

He ordered some scotch- ready to stop thinking now- he'd thought he'd done enough of it. Time to stop.

* * *

Tomas sat at 10:00 at night, staring out the window. Jack hadn't returned yet and he was getting worried. What if he had been hurt, or gotten lost?

He sighed- Jack could take care of himself. He told himself he should got to sleep- but he didn't.

Finally close to 11:00 Jack pulled up. Tomas watched from the window and he got out of the car, quite unsteady. It didn't take him long to realize that Jack was totally wasted. But from the look of it- Jack had passed the stage where you feel good into the stage where you felt awful and were about to pass out. Jack staggered up into the barn and Tomas wondered if he should go up and check on Jack. He figured he wouldn't- Jack was probably already passed out or throwing up.

Tomas shrugged and went to bed- who could predict Jack?

* * *

The next morning, Tomas thought for sure he was going to have to go wake Jack up, but he walked out and found that Jack was in the same place he was every morning.

"Fun time yesterday?" Tomas asked, pretending not to notice Jack's red eyes.

Jack groaned. "Yeah," he started to nod and then stopped. Tomas smiled, he had the feeling that Jack might still be a little buzzed.

"Well," he said louder than need be. "Let's get to work!" he slapped Jack on the shoulder and Jack glared up at him. Tomas just smiled.

**Author's Note: **Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note:** Please review! And thank you to all who have!


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: **Nope- still don't- but I plan to offer my $3.50 to buy it- just as soon as a get a phone to contact the owners!

**Author's Note: **Sorry this took a little while- work got in the way of updating and then my computer crashed- don't worry, Neal is back up and running! (Neal is my computer)

**Hidden**

**Chapter 10**

Tomas smiled as he sat back on the couch. Jack had been working with them for 2 months and they were all enjoying a family plus Jack movie night. After some serious arguing between Maria and Theresa, the movie S.W.A.T. was now playing.

Tomas glanced over at Jack. He certainly didn't seem to be taking the movie very seriously, chuckling at some of the most intense parts. Tomas had the feeling that Jack knew just how far off the script was from the real thing. Tomas shrugged- he'd given up trying to figure out Jack.

Theresa was getting ice cream for everyone, Maria was snuggled under his arm, Jack was sitting a respectful distance away and Tomas couldn't be happier.

A gasp from Theresa changed that. "Dad!" she whispered loudly. Jack was on his feet before Tomas had time to register it, all traces of peace gone. Tomas stood up and moved quickly to his daughter.

"What is it?" he asked, grabbing her arms.

"There was som-someone outside," she said. "He had a gun!" Tomas wasted no time- he knew as well as anyone else that his farm was a target for robbers.

"Quick," he said. "To the back room." The girls knew where they were supposed to go and went. Jack followed, eyes scanning the fields through every window. His every muscle was ready for action.

Tomas ushered the girls into the back room, he opened a cabinet which was just outside the room, revealing 4 guns. He passed one out to each of the girls and turned to Jack.

"Give me one," Jack said, not looking at Tomas but instead around the house. "I'll take care of this." It was the first time that Tomas had ever heard Jack talk to him in anything but a respectful tone. This tone was respectful, but it also demanded respect and obedience. Slowly, Tomas handed Jack over the gun he had taken from Jack 2 months ago.

The change was amazing. The gun fulfilled a hole in Jack that Tomas hadn't noticed until now. Now that Tomas thought about it, Jack always did seem empty, missing something- now he didn't. As the gun slid into Jack's opened palm, he proceeded to change even more. He was suddenly taller, though he was still about the same height as Tomas. His back was straighter and his whole posture seemed to have meaning, determination.

"Hide out in the room," Jack said, his eyes never once leaving the hallway. "It's ok." Finally, Jack turned to Tomas and as their eyes met, Tomas saw a hard determination in them as well. The constant awareness the Jack always carried had evolved into a full-fledged state of being.

"If I'm not back in 25 minutes," Jack began, and then shrugged. Tomas nodded silently. It was chilling to hear a man talk of his might-be death and then just shrug. Tomas got into the room with his daughter. Jack nodded at him, which almost seemed to be a salute, checked his ammunition and was gone.

* * *

Jack made his way carefully out of the house through a back way. His agent state had come upon him and every rustle was analyzed in his brain in a matter of seconds. He came out from behind a wall and glanced out towards the main entrance of the house. He spotted 3 young men sneaking toward the entrance. Two more were checking out the barn. Another appeared to have just finished checking that side of the house. Jack quickly did the math- the meant one was probably checking his side too. He crouched down in some bushes and waited.

The almost teenager who walked by, didn't appear to think anyone would be there, he sure wasn't checking very carefully. As he passed the bush Jack was hiding in, Jack jumped out and slammed the butt of his gun into the back of the man's head. He was out cold. Quietly, he dragged the unconscious form into the bushes.

He glanced out from behind his side of the house again and saw that the 4 by the main entrance were deep in conversation. He wasn't close enough to hear but guessed it was about where Tomas and the girls were. Deciding to deal with the ones by the barn first he carefully snuck through the horse field to the barn. He heard the hushed conversation that told him the two men were just walking out of the barn. He hoped they hadn't hurt the animals.

He didn't wait for them to get comfortable he pounced immediately. He didn't want to alert the others, so he didn't fire a shot. One of them landed a good punch to Jack's left eye before both were knocked out. He grabbed some twine and tied them both up before heaving them in an empty stall. He didn't think they would wake up soon, but just to be safe he did it anyway.

His mind quickly turned to the next problem- taking on 4 guys at once might prove to be a little more difficult. He knew he could probably do it- but if he faced the facts- he hadn't done hand to hand combat in over 8 months. He might be a little rusty. He supposed it was better he try that then resort to shooting them- he didn't want to kill them necessarily. He glanced around the barn to get a good look at them.

A bullet flew into the wood above his head. Well, at least now he didn't have to make the decision. Taking a deep breath and feeling the rush of adrenaline rush through him, he stepped out and shot. He first three shots, saw one man go down. He took a moment to recover before spinning out and firing again. Another went down. A quick glance over the edge told him that the remaining two men had taken cover behind the stairs leading to the main entrance.

He shot at them as they popped their heads out to shoot at him, but after a few times of this, he decided he'd had enough. There were only two of them, he had training and judging by their shots, they weren't the best marksmen. Firing a last round to keep them busy, he reloaded and quietly ran to the edge of the corner of the house. He took one out quickly from his new position and knew as he saw the man go down with one hand on his neck that he was dead. He shot the other in the shoulder and went over to investigate.

He walked behind the porch type thing to find the man he had shot in the shoulder, lying on his back, with silent tears making their way down his face.

"Who are you working for?" Jack asked pointing a gun at the man's head. He couldn't deny the possibility that these men were after him- working for the Chinese government- though that possibility seemed far-fetched considering they didn't appear to be very organized or good with guns at all. The man didn't say anything and Jack crouched down next to him.

"Who are you working for?" he repeated in Spanish, jamming his gun roughly into the man's head.

"Working for?" the man said, clearly confused. He took a pained breath. "No one- we just wanted the money- please, let me go…" Jack studied the man for a second- he believed him. He stood up, planning to kick the man in the head and go get Tomas.

Suddenly a bullet tore through his right arm, halfway between his shoulder and elbow. He cursed, quickly transferred his gun to his left hand and swung around. It was the man he'd first knocked out. Mentally, Jack cursed himself for not making sure the man was totally under. He stood up and shot the man who was too stupid to not take cover, thinking Jack was down. He glanced over to see the man who he had shot in the shoulder was going for his partner's gun. He stood up and stepped on the man's outstretched wrist- hearing it break. The man whimpered in pain before Jack kicked him in the head, knocking him out.

Jack inhaled sharply. The adrenaline rushed out of him quickly, leaving him feeling slightly sick, very tired and his arm like it was on fire. Calling the agent in him back up, he turned to his injured arm. Damn, the bullet was still lodged in it. He would need someone to stop the bleeding once he pulled it out.

He wiped his forehead with the back of his left hand. Looking at his right arm, which was covered in blood, he sighed and walked in the house.

* * *

Tomas sat with his girls, trying to convince them and himself that the shots he heard outside were the robbers dying not Jack. It made him very aware of how much he had come to care for Jack. The girl's were fairly hysterical. Theresa had silent tears coursing down her face and she flinched every time they heard a bullet. Maria was sitting there in some form of shock. When the firing started, she had gone pale as a ghost, her eyes wide in fear.

They heard the front door open and Tomas got his gun ready- both girls froze as the footsteps stopped in the kitchen.

"Tomas?" Tomas nearly fainted in relief- it was Jack. Theresa sighed and Maria grinned. "You can come out now- I took care of them." Tomas smiled at the girls and walked out.

As he reached the kitchen, he saw Jack's left eye was an array of colors. He was also covered in blood.

"Are you ok?" he asked. Maria and Theresa came in close behind him, each having similar reactions.

"I'll be fine," Jack said, but Tomas noticed that his voice was laced with pain. He turned so Tomas could see more than his left side and Tomas gasped. His upper right arm was coated in thick blood.

"I'm gonna need your help with this," Jack said.

"Of course!" Tomas said. "Maria- go grab some clean towels or something! Theresa- some ice! Jack, we need to get you to a hospital!"

"No," Jack said quickly. "It's fine- we can do it here."

"What?" Tomas said, shocked.

"I don't need a hospital- we just need to get the bullet out." Jack said, examining the wound. "Will you help me?"

"Of course," Tomas said, coming over to Jack. Jack sat down at one of the high chairs they had.

"Now, I don't think it hit any major arteries," Jack said, still looking at his arm. Tomas wondered at Jack's decision not to go the hospital- he was sweating from pain. "But with the bullet in there- I can't really tell. Here, could you cut away my shirt." Tomas grabbed a kitchen knife and made a slit, tearing the rest of the sleeve off so they had a clear view of the hole.

Jack wiped some of the blood away with his left hand, and then wiped his hand on his pants, before continuing.

"It's not against the bone," he said through gritted teeth. "So it should be easy enough to get out. But it's going to bleed a lot more once we do so-"

At that moment Maria came back with some old towels- looking very frightened. She handed them to Jack who managed a half smile through the pain.

"Great, now Tomas, just reach in and grab it- once it's out, it should be fine." Tomas stared at Jack was he serious? Tomas rubbed his sweaty hand on his pants- he'd never done anything like this before. He went to reach in- deciding it was now or never.

"Hold on," Jack said, gulping. "One second." Tomas stared as Jack went very still and closed his eyes. "Ok, now- do it quick." Tomas reached in, trying to ignore Jack's sharp intake of breath- he grabbed the piece of metal and pulled it out. Jack released the breath he was holding and swayed. For a moment Jack was afraid he was pass out- but then he opened his eyes.

"Ok," he said, quietly. "Now, just put some pressure on it- and the bleeding should stop on its own. The hole isn't very big."

Tomas saw Maria pale as they put the first towel to his arm. It quickly became wet with blood.

"There is an unconscious man outside," Jack said as they moved on to the second towel. "There are two more in the barn- third stall."

"Ok, I'll handle it," Tomas promised.

"I'd rather not have to talk to the police," Jack said quietly. Tomas thought it was an odd request- but this man had just saved his family- if that's what Jack wanted- then so be it.

"I'll call in a few favors," Tomas promised. Jack nodded and put his left arm on the towel.

The second towel passed quickly like the first, but by the third towel the blood had begun to slow.

Tomas walked outside, called his friend at the police department and the officer promised Tomas that someone would be by to pick up the men and it was fine. As long as they had Tomas' report- Jack didn't have to come in.

As he walked back in, the girls had moved on to a 4th towel and the blood flow was much better. Finally it stopped to a trickle.

"Ok," Jack announced, his voice tired and painful. "It should be ok to bandage now." Theresa had thought ahead of them and moved in to wrap up the wound. She finished and Jack politely thanked her. He flexed and Tomas noticed his face scrunch up with pain.

"Sure you don't need a hospital, Jack?" he said, putting a hand on the man's shoulder.

"Yeah," Jack said. "It wasn't very deep- it should be fine in a week or two if it doesn't get infected."

"If you say so," Tomas said, doubtful.

Suddenly Jack looked around and frowned.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"What for?" Tomas said, shocked.

"I got blood everywhere."

"Don't worry about it," Theresa said. Jack frowned a bit more before relaxing a little.

Maria announced she was going to bed and Theresa followed soon after. Tomas was tickled to see Theresa hug him carefully from the left side and Maria give him a quick kiss on the cheek.

Jack stared after them and Tomas realized that he was in a different kind of shock. Tomas watched as Jack frowned, deep in thought and then a small smile spread across his face. Tomas smiled to himself.

"I'm going to go to sleep to," Jack said, slowing getting out of the chair, being careful not to bump his arm on anything. He began to walk to the door, but Tomas called and stopped him.

"Jack," he said seriously. Jack stopped and turned to look at him. "You probably saved our lives today." Jack blushed ever so slightly and looked away. He opened his mouth to say something, but Tomas continued.

"Do you really think I'm gonna make you sleep outside?" Jack was looking even more confused. "Follow me." Jack nodded and followed his boss. Tomas lead him to the spare bedroom. It was simple, but obviously MUCH bigger than the small room above the barn. It had a full-sized bed, a bed stand and a small closet.

"The bathroom is right through there," Tomas said, pointing to a door.

"You want me to stay in here?" Jack said.

"Yes," Tomas said. "Make yourself at home." Jack was still staring at the room in amazement and Tomas smiled at him and walked out.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note:** I actually did some research on gunshot wounds- just for this- haha- don't I feel professional? Anyway- I tried to keep true to what you would actually do- but if it's a little off, forgive a poor, uneducated writer, please. :) Please review!


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: **I OWN NOTHING! I'M SCUM! SCUM!

**Author's Note:** going to XC camp for a week so the next one will take a bit longer- it will be here soon though!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 11 (wow this is getting long!)**

Tomas got up and stretched- looking at his clock next to his bed. 6:30- he had slept in late. Well, he supposed he deserved that extra hour of sleep. He got ready for the day- knowing that the men would be here soon to pick up the dead bodies.

He sighed- they'd came late last night to pick up the ones Jack had knocked unconscious- the two in the barn had woken up- but Jack had done such a good job tying them up, they hadn't managed to even move, much less come untied. He walked past the girls' rooms, peeking in the make sure they were ok. Both were sleeping soundly, probably exhausted from last nights' events.

He walked down the steps, trying not to think about last night. He'd never been so scared for his girls, for his family, for Jack. He never wanted to feel that way again. Pushing thoughts of terror from his mind, he decided to peek in on Jack as well.

He pushed open the door slowly, not wanting to wake Jack up. Looking in, he couldn't help but smile. Jack was fast asleep. He was curled up, lying on his left side (obviously). His left hand was under his pillow, his right arm curled tightly around his body. Tomas shook his head, uncertain even now if they should have taken Jack to a hospital.

Shrugging, he walked into the kitchen. For a second he stopped in his tracks. There was a lot of blood. It was splashed on the floor where Jack had first stood, and huge blots of it were all on the floor and counter where he had sat on the high seat. Swallowing to keep his stomach in check, he set about cleaning it up, not wanting the girls to see it as they came into the kitchen.

As he finished he heard a truck drive up. He took a deep breath and walked outside. He gagged- this was the first real look he'd had at the dead bodies. They were covered in their own blood and beginning to smell. As he waited for the man to get out of his car, he took a closer look. One man in front of the steps had been hit directly in the chest- another in the stomach. Another had taken almost a direct hit in the neck. Tomas glanced over- the one farthest away had been hit directly in the heart.

Tomas waved to the men walking up to take the dead bodies- but was worried. How did Jack learn to shoot like that? How did _anybody_ shoot like that? Jack had briefly outlined what had happened the night before- and if Tomas judged things right- he had shot a man directly in the heart with his _left _hand. Tomas frowned- this wasn't normal. Jack's secrets were getting deadlier.

"Hey," Tomas said, greeting the man.

"Hey, I'm Stephan Meza," the man said, showing Tomas his badge. "Work down at the station in town- just here to pick up the dead ones." Tomas nodded.

"Right over there- thanks for coming so early- I didn't want my daughters seeing them."

"No problem." Stephan's men continued to carry the dead bodies and load them in the truck. Stephan stared at them.

"Hellova shot you got working for you," he said. Tomas covered his own worries about where Jack learned such a skill and laughed.

"Yep, he's sleeping off some minor injuries right now." Stephan smiled and nodded. Before long the bodies were packed up and Stephan said his goodbyes and left.

Tomas sighed- he was grateful to Jack for saving him. But this was getting to be too much. It just wasn't normal for someone to be able to shoot that good. Jack's secret was getting bigger and harder to ignore. He would have to ask him about it.

He walked slowly toward the house- thinking of Jack looking peaceful sleeping. Maybe he shouldn't ask. Jack seemed trustworthy- he had saved Tomas' life and Maria and Theresa's life. But still, there were some things he just had to know.

* * *

Jack woke up slowly, savoring the feeling of a soft mattress. It had been months since he'd slept on a real bed. Usually he was on the road, so the ground was the only bed he had- and most of the people he'd worked for had given him a small fold-out, uncomfortable cot. It was nice to be stretched out on a soft comforter. For a second his considered rolling over and going back to sleep, but a pain in his arm stopped him.

He stretched gently, sitting up in bed. He glanced at his bandage and frowned. There was a little blood on the wrappings, but not much. He should clean it out though. Carefully he began to unwrap the bandage. Finally it stripped away. Looking closer he realized he might have needed stitches, but it was too late for that. Besides- putting his name into a hospital was an unnecessary risk. He had gotten sick earlier in his "trip", probably from too little food and dehydration- but it had passed- this would too.

Getting a washcloth, he gently cleaned out the wound and the area around it. He took a quick shower, got dressed and decided to see if he could do any work left-handed.

As he walked into the kitchen, Tomas was already there, looking a bit serious.

"Hey, Jack," Tomas said. "We need to talk." Jack froze- he should have been expecting this- he had thought about it. But now that it was happening he wasn't ready for it.

"Sure," he said, trying to remain casual.

"I'm sorry," Tomas said slowly. "But I have to know- where did you learn to shoot like that?"

Jack opened his mouth to say some half-thought out lie, but Tomas interrupted, probably guessing what Jack was going to say.

"No, Jack- I need the truth," he said. "It's not normal for someone to be able to shoot like that- and I can't let you stay around my daughter unless…… unless I know they're safe."

"I would never hurt-" Jack began- but Tomas continued.

"I don't think you would- but I still have to know." Tomas finished, looking just as uncomfortable as Jack was feeling.

Jack's mind reeled. Should he lie? Just say that his father was a policeman- he'd learned it from him? He opened his mouth to lie- and couldn't.

Looking up at Tomas, Jack knew he couldn't lie to this man. He had accepted most of Jack's secrets, he'd been his first friend in 6 months, he'd trusted Jack with his daughters, and he cared. He cared about his daughters and he cared about Jack. He had a right to know.

But of course Jack couldn't tell him. He couldn't tell Tomas something that only 5 people knew about. He couldn't put Tomas in that danger- once Tomas knew something- it would be too easy to let something slip. So he wanted to tell Tomas the truth but couldn't- where did that leave him?

"I can't tell you," Jack said quietly. The words were out of him before he knew it. He didn't want to lie- so he'd told the truth. Tomas looked at him surprised and a little hurt.

"I'm sorry- but, it's just……" he struggled for the right words. "I can't tell you." He finished lamely. "Look, I would never hurt you or your daughters, I give you my word- but I can't tell you why…… why I'm…… where I learned……I just can't tell you. And if you want me to leave- that's fine, I won't blame you."

Tomas stood up slowly. "I have to think about it." The older man said. He slowly turned and walked outside.

Jack walked back to his room and flopped, gently, on the bed. He felt more miserable than he had in a long time. He didn't want to go back on the road. He didn't want to travel and not have any place to stay at night. He didn't want to go hungry again.

And he didn't want to leave. He had grown to care about this family. Tomas had been a interesting mix of a father, an older brother and a friend. He was a good, honest, generous man and Jack enjoyed working for him. The girls, though they sometimes reminded him painfully of Kim, had also been a blessing. They were both so different. Theresa was quiet and thoughtful, while Maria was louder and more outgoing. But they just fit each other perfectly. They were both welcoming, friendly, and loving.

He would miss it so much. He would miss the chattering at mealtimes, the friendly talk during work. He'd miss the movies at night sometimes. He'd miss going to the grocery store and being forced to pick out food he liked. He would miss the security and love working here had given him.

But like everything good in his life, it was just temporary. Tomas probably wouldn't want him to stay. So he would leave, bounce around for a couple of months before trying to settle down again. He would be happy for a few months before someone would ask too many questions and he would start again. It was just a vicious cycle.

Is this how he would spend the rest of his life? Bouncing around ranches in Mexico and South America? Well, that's what you get for trying to save lives. That's what you get for being dirty.

**Author's Note: **Please excuse any spelling erros due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note: **Please review- they make me happy- and we all want little old me to be happy right?


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: **no, no, still don't

**Author's Note: **back from xc camp alive! so here's the next chapter

**Hidden**

**Chapter 12**

Tomas walked outside, his mind already reeling with thoughts. Sitting next to the barn, as Jack had done on many occasions, he took a deep breath and forced his mind to focus.

Well, at least Jack had told the truth- however unhelpful it was. Jack had a big secret that he couldn't tell- and he was willing to lose his job to keep that secret from coming out. What kind of secret could be that big? Why couldn't he tell? Would it get people in trouble? Was it an evil thing? Something Jack had done? Was he running from the law? Was it bad enough to cause such awful nightmares that sometimes plagued Jack?

Tomas sighed- he would never know the answers to those questions. It was useless to keep thinking about them. But the answers to them would make his decision so much easier. If only he had the answers- but he knew the answers would be met with silence.

Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to look at the facts- starting from the beginning. Jack had no family- no one who would call him. His wife had died. He had done heroin- but he was clean now. He had gotten drunk one day for no apparent reason. He had awful nightmares that sometime cause him to be sick the next day. He could shoot a gun- he could kill people. He couldn't tell where or why or how he learned to fight like that.

All in all, Jack Hunt was a dangerous man- if he looked at these cold hard facts, logic would tell him to fire Jack. But there were other facts at play here.

Jack seemed like a good man. He had always been respectful to Tomas and his daughters. He was a hard worker. Tomas felt comfortable around him. The girls did too. He had saved their lives.

Tomas sighed- the big thing was, Tomas cared about Jack. So right now, he was a little freaked out that Jack could kill those men- but he knew that in a few days, he would be anxiously worried about Jack. He had a feeling the girls would be furious at him if he let Jack go. He could almost here Maria storming up to her room and Theresa's accusing stare.

But he would to anything to protect them. Even if it meant making them mad at him. So the bottom question was- Was Jack dangerous? The facts told him yes- Jack Hunt was a man who could protect himself and others at all costs. Jack Hunt was dangerous to keep around.

But his heart told him something else. He knew that Jack would never hurt his daughters- Jack would never hurt Tomas. Jack had risked his life before seeing Tomas' family get hurt. In his heart, Tomas knew Jack was trustworthy.

But which one should he follow- logic or his heart? He sighed again, before walking in the barn to think things over some more.

* * *

Jack quickly packed. He had no doubt Tomas wouldn't want him to work here anymore- and he didn't feel like hanging around after he was fired. Briefly he wondered if he would get a chance to say goodbye to the girls. But, the idea was quickly dismissed as he realized they probably wouldn't even be up and Tomas might not even want him talking to them.

He rubbed a tired hand over his eyes, feeling as if he had been up for a long time, instead of the 1 hour he had been awake. For a split second, he tried to dig up something to make him stop feeling so upset.

He reached down and tried to call up some anger- something to protect his feelings as Tomas threw him out. Drawing a breath he searched for a reason to be mad. He had saved Tomas' family- he didn't deserve to be fired. It was Tomas who had given him the gun, who allowed him to do it. It wasn't his fault.

Jack let out the breath he'd been holding, let the anger go with it. It had been fake, forced anger anyway. It wasn't going to do anything except make him feel guilty for thinking such thoughts.

He searched for something else to protect him- guilt. It had worked in bad situations before. He didn't deserve the happiness that working here offered. He deserved walking around with no particular destination, being hungry. He tried to get himself into this state of mind, but the sadness he felt at leaving quickly took it over.

Hope. No, that wouldn't work. He couldn't ask for a better job than this one. There was no hope when he was kicked out- he couldn't go back to his old life just because he lost this job. Love. Joy. Peace. They were all useless to him right now.

Jack sat on the bed, holding his head in his hands. He waited for Tomas to come back and tell him the news he was already sure of- and he was powerless on the inside. On the outside he could go blank- but on the inside- he was utterly defenseless

* * *

Tomas walked into Jack's room, feeling like a judge giving a verdict. Jack was sitting on his bed, looking tired, and obviously waiting for him.

"Well, Jack," he started. Jack tensed. "I've thought about it a lot." He paused and Jack tensed more and more until suddenly he went blank. Tomas stared- he looked like he did when Tomas was about to pull the bullet out. Tomas ignored it and plowed on.

"You might have a big secret- but that doesn't change who you are. You're a good person, Jack. And you're staying here as long as you want to- longer if I have my way."

Tomas watched, in mild amusement at Jack's reaction. The blankness melted into confusion, the confusion into relief. Jack stood up, looking alive again.

"Still want to stay?" Tomas asked, smiling. Jack gave his signature small smile in return.

"Yeah, of course," he said.

"Well, that's certainly good- I can still retire early!" Tomas said, laughing and slapped Jack on the back. As always when he was being praised, Jack looked down and slightly to the right. Tomas smiled at Jack's odd habits.

"You'd better unpack!" Tomas said, brightly before walking out of the room.

Tomas walked into the kitchen, still chuckling at the sight of the confusion on Jack's face. He felt happy- he knew he made the right decision. And as Maria and Theresa both came down the stairs sleepily and Jack walked slowly out of his room- Tomas knew everything would be ok.

**Author's Note: **Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupdity)

**Author's Other Note: **Here is an alternate ending for this chapter- I might actually like the alernate one better so you'll have to tell me what you think!

**Alternate ending-**

"You'd better unpack!" Tomas said, brightly before walking out of the room.

* * *

Jack was still a little spaced from the waves of relief that had poured over him. He hadn't felt this happy in months. Turning to his bad, he dumped the meager contents in the middle of his bed.

He was still smiling slightly as he walked out into the kitchen to a smiling Tomas, and two very sleepy girls. However, Maria was recovering fast and before long started talking. Theresa joined, Tomas laughed, Jack said his occasional word or two and life went temporarily back to normal.

**Author's Last Note (really!):** Hope you enjoyed- the next chapter should come out soon- please review!


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: **Well, I still don't own 24... still wishingI did...

**Author's Note: **Sorry this took so long- this is the last one, so please review and tell me what you thought about this chapter and the story overall!

**Hidden**

**Chapter 13**

Tomas jumped as Maria practically dove in front of him to get to the sink after breakfast.

"What's the rush?" he asked as she started scrapping all the extra food into the trashcan at top speed.

"Theresa and me are having a contest- who can do the dishes fastest- loser has to do the dishes for three days in a row- she's timing me now- I time her tomorrow- now give me your plate!" Maria said this very quickly and all in one breath. Jack chuckled and handed Maria his plate right away- Tomas laughed and did the same.

Tomas watched as Jack walked out to get to work, smiling. Life had gone back to normal. It had been three weeks since Jack had been shot. He was working practically up to what he usually did. Tomas still wouldn't allow him to do the heavy lifting, but he had the feeling if he did, Jack would be ok (or at least not tell him if he was having any pain).

Tomas' son, Jose, had stopped by for a week in between his summer session and the regular fall session of his college. Jose had always been a cheerful person and had heard all about Jack from letters between him and the girls and Tomas. Jack had gradually relaxed around him and by the end of the week, Jack had accepted Jose.

Tomas was brought back to the present as the telephone rang.

"You get it!" Maria cried as she dropped a handful of spoons.

"You're so gonna lose!" Theresa said, looking at the stopwatch and grinning.

"Demand… rematch," Maria said, frantically trying to put a plate in the dishwasher with one hand, empty a glass with the other, pull out the top part of the dishwasher with her elbow and pick up a spoon with her feet.

Tomas carefully walked around Maria and grabbed the phone, still laughing.

"Hello?" he said. He walked into the living room so he could hear over Maria's screams of dismay.

"Hello," said the voice on the other line. "Is this Tomas Verdugo?"

"Yes," Tomas said. "Look, I don't want to buy anything."

"No," the man on the other line said quickly. "No, I just need to talk to Jack."

Tomas froze. Had he heard wrong?

"Sorry- who?"

"Jack," the voice said. "Jack Hunt- he does still work for you right?" The slight panic in the man's voice did nothing to ease Tomas' worries.

"Umm……" Tomas said. "Yes, he does, but……" he trailed off. Jack had told him no one would likely call. Tomas didn't even know he had given the number out to anyone.

"Who's this?" he asked, trying to hide the worry in his voice.

"This is Tony," the man said. "Look, it's pretty important I talk to Jack right away. Could you just tell him Tony's on the phone? He'll know who I am."

"Ok," Tomas said slowly. He wasn't sure about all this. "Hold on a second, he's outside."

"Ok, thanks," Tony said. Tomas put the phone down slowly. What was going on? He walked outside to where Jack was flexing his injured arm.

"Jack!" Tomas called. Jack stopped playing with his arm, looking guilty.

"Yes?" he called back.

"There's a Tony on the phone for you." Tomas watched as the look of relaxation and happiness on Jack's face faded into what Tomas could only describe as panic.

"Tony?" Jack asked, already practically running to the house.

"Yeah," Tomas said. "Said you'd know who he was." Jack flew through the door and dived for the phone. Tomas thought he looked more scared than he had when the robbers came. Who was this Tony?

"Tony?" Jack asked, forgetting that Tomas was listening in his haste. He was fairly panicked. Why would Tony call unless something awful had happened? "What's wrong? Is it Kim? Chase?"

"Jack!" Tony said. "No, they're fine! But I got some bad news.

"What? What's wrong?" Jack said, slightly less panicked now that he knew Kim was safe.

"Look Jack- I'm sorry- but- it's the Chinese- they know you're alive."

Jack sat down on the couch as the news hit him like a ton of bricks. How could this happen?

"How- How good's your information?" he asked quietly. Inside he begged for it to be false.

"Very," Tony assured. "Look I can't tell you everything over the phone. The point is you gotta get back over the border."

"What? Why? Isn't that more risky?"

"No, don't worry- we got it planned out. But we need you to get over the border- get to Bonita, a small inn called 'The Dolphin'- we got it all planned out from there."

"But- I," Jack started, than stopped. What was he going to say- he didn't want to leave?

"Look, Jack- they've already started to search for you- you should leave by tonight- as soon as you can. The sooner you get back- the better."

Jack gulped- he knew it was too good to last, staying down here.

"Ok, Tony- I will," he said quietly.

"Jack," Tony said. "I'm sorry about all this. But don't worry- we got it covered. Just get back up here, okay? See you soon- I got to go."

"Ok, bye Tony." Tony hung up and Jack was left with a phone in his hand, feeling empty. He had to leave. He had to leave this great place- he had to be on the run again.

"Who's Kim and Chase?" Tomas interrupted his thoughts. "Who's Tony? What's going on!"

Silently Jack cursed himself for mentioning Kim and Chase in front of Tomas. Feeling slightly sick, he said the first lie he came up with.

"Kim is Tony's daughter. Chase is her husband. Tony's my best friend." Jack's heart gave a little twist- couldn't even call his daughter his own. His thoughts didn't stay on that for long- instead they jumped to the next biggest problem- the Chinese knew he was alive. They were looking for him. He looked up at Tomas and glanced to the kitchen where the girls were still goofing around.

What if the Chinese found him here? Dammit! He had put this whole family in danger by staying this long! He glanced toward the kitchen where Maria was yelling at the dishes rapidly in Spanish. Theresa was laughing in between counting slowly out loud. It was his fault if they got hurt.

"Look, uh," he said, tearing his eyes away from the kitchen door. "Tony needs some help- so I have to go."

Tomas looked at him and Jack was painfully aware that Tomas didn't believe him. Jack cringed waiting for the inevitable flow of questions. Tomas looked at him for a second longer and took a deep breath.

"You're coming back, right?" he asked quietly. Jack looked up at him, surprised. At first he thought an instant 'no.' Coming back would put this family at even more risk. But, if he was alive to come back at all- then maybe the Chinese would have cleared him

"I'll try," he said, and meant it. "I don't know how long I'll be gone, though."

"There'll always be a spot open," Tomas said warmly and Jack felt himself smile.

"Thanks," he said. "I've got to go pack." For some reason he felt better about the whole situation, knowing that he would always be welcome here. He closed his eyes and dared to hope that he would be able to come back.

* * *

Tomas' smile didn't disappear, but it turned sadder. Jack was leaving, and Tomas knew somehow that he was leaving to go into danger yet again. Would he be hurt? Was he going to come back? Was he going to live? As he turned to tell the girl's the bad news- the smile was gone completely.

He walked slowly into the kitchen and the girls caught on right away that something was wrong.

"Dad?" Theresa said.

"Jack has to leave," Tomas said. Seeing Maria temper roar up- he quickly continued. "That was his friend on the phone- his friend needs him for a while."

"Oh, no," Theresa said, sadly. "I wonder what's wrong."

"When will he be back?" Maria asked, absentmindedly turning off the running water.

"I don't know- he wasn't sure," Tomas said.

"When is he leaving?" Theresa asked.

"I think right now," Tomas said.

"Well- he can't! We haven't even had a goodbye feast!" Theresa said.

"We'll just have another welcome one for when he gets back," Maria said.

"Actually- I don't know if he is going to be able to-" Tomas started but Maria cut him off.

"We'll have a welcome one for when he gets back," Maria said, her tone daring him to disagree. Tomas gulped and nodded.

"Of course we will," Theresa said, indicating that she never meant that he wouldn't be coming back. Just then Jack walked in- holding the same worn duffel bag he had arrived with. Though, Tomas was happy to note, it was a bit more stuffed than before.

"Sorry I have to leave so suddenly," Jack said.

"Well, that's ok," Theresa said. "But we had hoped to give you a goodbye dinner or something." She frowned a little.

"But, since we can't," Maria cut in. "We'll give you an extra big welcome back party." Tomas grinned as Jack opened his mouth and closed it- deciding not to argue.

"Well, I have to be going," Jack said. Tomas and the girl's followed him to the porch.

"Bye, Jack," Theresa said, hugging him. "Be careful!"

"Bye," Maria said, also hugging an embarrassed Jack. "For now." She added in her 'disagree-and-die' tone.

"Thanks for everything," Jack said, turning to Tomas.

"You're a good man, Jack," Tomas said, shaking Jack's hand. "We'll be waiting for you." Jack smiled and after another hug from both girls, started to walk down the road.

The girls yelled after him- Theresa "Be carefuls!" and Maria threats to hunt him down. He turned back every few steps to wave until finally he was too far away to see very well. The girls went back inside, but Tomas stayed out, staring at where he could barely see Jack.

Faintly he heard Maria yells of triumph since Theresa had forgotten to stop the stopwatch, but he couldn't bring himself of laugh at it. He continued watching the spot where Jack had walked away. A horrible sadness came over him. He didn't share Maria's conviction that Jack would be back.

Sighing, he whispered something to the empty road in front of him,

"You better come back, Jack."

* * *

**Author's Note: **Please excuse any spelling errors due to author's severe case of S.S. (Spelling Stupidity)

**Author's Other Note: **Well, thank you everyone who reviewed and I really liked writing this story so I hope you enjoyed it- please leave a final review! Also, I'm hoping to write a Season 5 based off this fic, but we've had some minor (ok majoy- i lost all my notes) drawbacks so I hope it will come- contiune checking around for a new story from me:)

Thank you all very much!


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